Friends With No Benefits
by SISbabyy
Summary: Brooke and Lucas are finally becoming friends and they stay friends…but for how long? When Brooke gets involved with a new guy will feelings resurface or will Lucas stay with Peyton? BL or BC? Set in Season 4.
1. Bound To Happen

Okay! So here is the story I was telling you guys about. Here's the first chapter. I hope you like it! Takes place from 4.10 and on.

* * *

"Friends With No Benefits"

Summary: Brooke and Lucas are finally becoming friends and they stay friends…but for how long? When Brooke gets involved with a new guy will feelings resurface or will Lucas stay with Peyton?

Chapter 1

As Brooke Davis walked out of the hospital room, she felt lonely. She leaned against the doorway and felt her eyes begin to tear up. She didn't want to cry in front of everyone, she didn't want to show how she really felt. The truth was, she would have to get over it because that's how she did things. When they didn't work out, she would either get over it or go out and party. At least, that's how she was now. Before she would fight for what she wanted…like Lucas. She fought for him but he just didn't fight back. So she gave up, she was fed up, and now she had to go through the pain of seeing her best friend and her ex boyfriend walking down the hallway together. She knew she did the right thing but she just wished she didn't feel so wrong about it.

Brooke then saw Peyton come out of Haley's room, ready to go back into Lucas'. They both half smiled and walked right past each other, heading into their friends and boyfriends room. When Brooke walked in the room and saw Haley hooked up to all of those monitors, she began to feel the tears come back to her eyes. But this time, she let them fall. Haley, her best friend was hooked up to all these wires and monitors, and she looked so pale. She hated seeing her best friend this way, she wished she didn't have to. But she stayed a loyal friend and sat next to her bedside, waiting for her to wake up from her sleep so she could see how she was doing.

A couple hours passed and Brooke fell asleep. When she woke up, she saw Haley staring back at her smiling. Brooke jerked up and smiled, rubbing her eyes and yawning.

"Hey hospital girl." Brooke said with a raspy tired voice.

"Hey Brooke." Haley said and smiled.

"How are you feeling?"

"Pretty good, just tired." Haley replied with a crooked smile.

"Nathan stopped by." Brooke commented.

"Yeah, I saw him. He stayed with me the whole night." Haley said and smiled.

Brooke was really happy for Haley when it came to Nathan. She just wished she could have the same thing. Besides the whole going on tour, repairing the marriage, and now the accident.

Brooke looked down at the floor, she felt like crying but she wouldn't let herself.

"Brooke, what's wrong?" Haley asked.

Brooke looked up and put on a smile.

"Nothing, I'm just really happy you're okay." She said.

Haley grabbed Brooke's hand.

"I know what's really wrong Brooke, you can't fool me."

Brooke laughed.

"I guess not." She said.

"Brooke, it's going to be okay. I know him, maybe you just need to talk to him." Haley suggested.

"Look at me, you're the one in the hospital and were still talking about my problems!" Brooke exclaimed.

Haley laughed.

"That's okay, it's been really boring around here so it's good to hear some drama."

"Well then trust me, you're going to get an ear full."

* * *

Peyton walked into Lucas' hospital room. She took a deep breath and sat down next to him. He then woke up.

"Sorry to wake you." She said apologetically.

Lucas smiled.

"You didn't." He said.

Peyton smiled. "Well good. So how do you feel?"

"Not that bad, I just really want to get out of here." He said.

"Yeah well I would break you out but then I think your mom would break me."

Lucas laughed but soon stopped when he saw Brooke walk past his door. She looked like she had been crying, but he couldn't tell. He figured that since he and Brooke were trying to be friends he should ask about her.

"Hey, uh what's going on with Brooke?"

Peyton then looked up at him, surprised. A tinge of jealousy picked at her. She tossed it aside because she knew Lucas loved her.

"I think a lot actually, but I haven't talked to her…you know what I mean." She said and looked back down.

"Yeah."

He knew what she meant. And everyday he felt bad for it. He basically ruined their friendship. He would take it back if he could but he couldn't. So for now, he would just have to live with the guilt.

"You know, at Nathan and Haley's wedding she said that she was dealing with some stuff…do you think she meant something serious?" He asked.

Since when did this turn into a conversation all about Brooke? Peyton was getting annoyed that he kept asking questions about her. He was with her now, shouldn't he just want to hold her and talk to her about everything instead of worrying about Brooke?

"She told me that too, but I don't think she meant anything by it." She answered truthfully.

She didn't really think anything serious was going on with her. Well, at least she didn't want to believe there was anyways. Even though they weren't friends, as long as she stayed away from Lucas or just remained friends with him, she wanted to repair the friendship they had lost.

Lucas nodded and decided to change the subject.

"So you know, I'm getting out of here soon." He said and smiled.

"Uh huh, I've been thinking about it all day." She said and walked over to his bed. She kissed him on the lips and just laid there with him.

* * *

Brooke was getting ready to tell Haley everything that had gone on for the past few months with her side of the story.

Brooke took a big breath and looked down at her hands.

"Okay, well it all started after your wedding coincidentally." Brooke began and laughed.

Haley nodded, urging her to go on.

"And well, I had just found out that Peyton had kissed Lucas so I was basically freaking out your whole wedding. Lucas and I had a huge fight before the toasts and then after we just danced…but I wasn't okay."

"Brooke…what do you mean you weren't okay?" Haley asked worriedly.

"I mean I wasn't okay with Lucas and mines relationship." Brooke said reassuring Haley nothing was wrong.

"That's understandable…I mean you even said so yourself that he didn't open up to you. One of his biggest regrets I bet."

"But that's the thing, I don't think he regrets it because he's with her now." Brooke said looking down.

"Yeah, because of you." Haley said.

"No, I just helped him realize his true feelings." Brooke said sadly.

"You still love him don't you?" Haley asked softly.

"I might…but I haven't really thought about it." Brooke said and shrugged.

"Since when have you had to think about love?" Haley asked.

Brooke thought about it. You didn't really have to. I mean you just knew when you loved someone, you didn't have to analyze it or think about it and decide.

"I guess never." Brooke replied.

"Exactly. Now go on."

Brooke nodded.

"Okay and then I broke up with him because I didn't want to get sucked into that triangle thingy again so before it could happen, I let him go."

"First mistake." Haley said in a simple tone.

"Ignoring that…"

"Okay. So anyways like I was saying I let him go but then we went to the banquet together and afterwards we said it was a mistake." Brooke continued.

"Second mistake."

Brooke cleared her throat, trying to ignore Haley's side comments.

"And then at the basketball game I congratulated him and we hugged but then I said 'go and get her'. So he did and they ended up kissing and then the accident happened and now here we are."

"Third mistake." Haley said. Now Brooke was angry. Haley was making her think this over and she really didn't want to think it over! She just wanted to be friends with him and try and be normal again.

"Haley please stop it. I know what you're doing and it's not going to work! I need to get over him just like he has me and I can't do that if your constantly in my ear saying I made a mistake."

"Not just one mistake…three!" Haley laughed.

Brooke sat and pouted.

"Look Brooke, I'm just kidding about what I just said. Not about the mistakes though. I really think you should try talking to him about the whole thing…maybe, I don't know, come clean?" Haley suggested.

"Come clean about what? I can't tell him what I just told you. He's finally happy!" Brooke exclaimed.

"You don't know that until you talk to him."

Brooke was now tearing up. She was just supposed to come into Haley's room and have a best friend talk but this ended up as a 'analyze Brooke's life' talk. Just then Nathan walked in.

"Hey Hales, I got you some water." He said and sat down on the other side of Haley's bed.

"Thank you." Haley said and he bent down to kiss her forehead.

"So did you see Lucas and Peyton? Their finally together, how cool right?" Nathan asked.

Brooke started tearing up even more and she didn't want Haley or Nathan to know why.

"I'm just…I'm going to go." Brooke said and rushed out of the room.

Haley was going to call her but she knew it would be no use. So instead she turned to Nathan.

"Nathan!" Haley yelled.

"What?" Nathan asked confused.

"Don't say that in front of Brooke! It's still early and she's adjusting!"

"Okay, okay, I promise I won't do that anymore. I'll keep the relationship status subtle." Nathan said.

Haley smiled. "Thank you."

"So how are you feeling?" Nathan asked drifting away from their past conversation.

"Well, I'm good really, I like the company I'm getting so that makes me feel better." Haley said simply.

"Well you know you always have my company." Nathan said and smiled.

"You're my favorite." Haley said and kissed him.

"Always?"

"And forever." Haley said and smiled wide.

"Okay well I'm going to let you rest."

Haley nodded and her eyes drifted close as he kissed her forehead. He walked out of the room and headed into the lobby, after Brooke.

* * *

Lucas saw Nathan rush after Brooke but he didn't know why. What had happened in there that left Brooke in tears and Nathan consoling her? Whatever it was, he wanted to know.

Peyton had fallen asleep, which left Lucas wide-awake. He was getting used to this whole relationship with Peyton thing but it was still a bit complicated. He always thought they would get together in the end…until Brooke came along. But now it seemed like it was going to happen again and he wasn't sure if he wanted that.

He tried to think of something to take his mind off of the drama that was going on in this little town. But every time he did, his mind would drift back to both of them. Brooke, then Peyton, then Brooke, and then Peyton. Would it ever end? He hoped it would. Peyton stirred in his arms and her eyes slowly opened.

"Hey, your awake." She said groggily.

"Yeah, I just couldn't sleep." He replied.

Peyton nodded and heard a knock at the door. It was Karen.

"I'm going to go and get some coffee while you and your mom talk for a bit, okay?"

Lucas nodded and Peyton walked out of the room while Karen walked in.

"How are you feeling?" She asked.

"Like I just had a heart attack." He said and laughed.

Karen looked at him sternly.

"Too soon?" He asked.

"Way to soon." Karen replied, but her face turned soft. She got up and hugged him.

"I'm just glad your okay." She whispered.

Lucas hugged her back.

"Okay you need your rest, so sleep okay?" Karen said.

Lucas nodded.

"I'll have someone check in on you in a bit." She said and kissed his forehead before walking out of the room.

Lucas just sighed and tried to get some sleep.

* * *

Nathan saw Brooke in the lobby and sat down next to her. She wiped away tears after seeing Nathan and stood up.

"Brooke…" he began.

"Nathan really, I'm fine." She said and smiled, her dimples showing. She still had tear-stained cheeks though.

"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have mentioned it in front of you this soon. I mean, I basically yelled it." Nathan said.

Brooke laughed a genuine laugh.

"Well I can't argue there, you really did flaunt it in front of me." She giggled.

Nathan laughed.

"So, your okay then?" He asked.

"Yeah." Brooke said and for that moment, she was.

Nathan got up and pulled her into a big bear hug. She closed her eyes, liking the safeness she felt in someone's arms. They broke apart and Brooke sat back down in the lobby while Nathan went to go check up on Haley.

* * *

Lucas couldn't fall asleep, he just couldn't. He was too wide-awake and he kept thinking about why Brooke was crying. Maybe he could get someone to get her inside to talk to him. He buzzed the nurses and they came rushing in.

"Did you need something?" A nurse asked.

"Oh no, nothing serious I just wanted to take a little walk if that's okay."

"Sure, but you have to take someone with you." The nurse said.

"Okay, I think there's someone in the lobby that could walk with me."

The nurse nodded and let him walk into the waiting room but when he got there he saw something else. He saw Nathan and Brooke hugging. He felt his heart hurt, and he was almost panicking. Is this what would happen when he saw her with someone else? I mean she was just hugging his brother and he already couldn't handle it. He told the nurse that he would take a walk later and she nodded and walked him back into the room.

He woke up and realized he had fallen asleep. But when he woke up, he saw Brooke standing in the doorway.

"Finally you woke up! I've been waiting for two hours!" She exclaimed, the sparkle in her eyes.

Lucas smiled and suddenly forgot everything that was around him.

"Did you want me for something?" He asked with a playful smile.

"Actually yes, I was talking to the nurse…"

"You were talking to the nurse? Brooke I thought you hated hospitals."

"I do, but when it comes to my friends, I'm always there for them." Brooke said with a shrug.

His heart sunk at the words friends but he quickly thought of something else.

"So anyways as I was saying I was talking to the nurse and she said that you requested a walk earlier but never took it so I was thinking we should get you walking!" Brooke exclaimed excitedly.

Lucas' smile grew wider and laughed.

"I think so too." He said and she helped him get out of bed.

* * *

Alright! So that was the first chapter. It's longer then my other chapters on my last story, but I figured you guys wouldn't mind! So why don't you just hit the button and review? 


	2. Love And Memories

_Okay so I'm loving all of the reviews for the last chapter! I hope you guys enjoy this one too!_

Chapter 2

Lucas and Brooke were walking down the hallway together in complete silence. She wasn't sure if she should start talking. And if she did, what would they talk about?

"So Luke…how are things with Peyton? I mean I know you probably haven't really spent that much time together but I was just wondering." She said. She knew she was babbling.

"Were okay, I mean we really haven't gotten to spend much time with each other but so far everything's great."

"That's awesome." Brooke said and put her head down. She wasn't going to let this get to her. She let him go, so he was doing what she told him to.

"I really am happy for you guys." She said sincerely. She wanted them both happy and if they were happy together, then so be it.

Lucas looked at her, surprised.

"Thanks." He said quietly.

"So let's get off of the drama subjects and on to something fun." Brooke said and smiled wide.

Lucas looked at her, intrigued.

"Okay, deal." He said. "What do you have in mind?"

Brooke thought about it for a second.

"I say let's stop the talking and actually _do_ something fun." Brooke said. "Are you tired of walking?"

"A little." Lucas admitted.

"Good. Then I will give you the tour of the hospital because, well, since I am afraid of them this is the perfect way to get over my fear. And I was thinking that since your tired I could get a wheelchair and wheel you around."

Lucas smiled.

"Sounds perfect."

* * *

Peyton walked into Haley's room, hoping to talk to her about Brooke.

"Hey Haley." She greeted.

"Hey." Haley said quietly.

"Look, I know that you and Brooke are really good friends and that's kind of the reason I'm here."

Haley sat up a little.

"I have been taking care of Brooke for a little while now, and she has always taken care of me back. But now, now I don't think I can do it anymore." Peyton said. She was nearly in tears.

"So I was just asking you if, if you could. She loves you Haley and Brooke and I have had our problems. So many problems that in her exact words 'like before is gone'. I just want her to have somebody there for her."

Haley nodded.

"Don't worry, I'll always be there for her."

* * *

Brooke was now wheeling Lucas around the whole entire hospital, including the nursery. They had gone just about everywhere and were laughing together, just like before. Brooke had missed this friendship she had with him, it didn't matter if they weren't 'together' anymore, just as long as she still had him in her life.

"And this right over there, is where I asked that little boy what's the matter and he coughed in my face." Brooke said, still a bit bitter about it.

Lucas just laughed. "I would have loved to see your face."

Brooke lightly slapped him. "Not funny Lucas Eugene Scott!"

Lucas winced.

"Ouch, did you have to put the middle name in there?"

"It was necessary." Brooke giggled and was wheeling him back to his room. They were both laughing until they saw who was waiting at the door. Karen and Peyton. Brooke immediately got uncomfortable.

"Oh I was just wheeling him around the hospital, giving him a tour." She quickly said without having them ask her where they had been.

Brooke took Lucas back into his room and helped him in bed.

"I'm going to go Lucas." She whispered in his ear.

"No, Brooke, you don't have to you can stay…"

"No, it's okay. I have to go check on Haley anyways. Get your rest." She said and left him lying there in his bed.

Brooke passed by Karen and Peyton and mouthed a 'sorry'. They weren't mad, she knew that. But she still didn't feel like it was right of her to do that to Peyton. I mean they were finally going out and then Brooke came waltzing in with him laughing. That was not a good start to a relationship. So she decided to cool things down a bit. She walked into Haley's room because she hadn't seen her all day and she loved talking to her. She knocked quietly on the door and let herself in.

"Hey Hales, how are you feeling this morning?" She said cheerfully.

"I see you've gotten your 'cheeriness' back." Haley grumbled.

Brooke shrugged. "Not really."

"You sure? You could have fooled me." Haley said and smiled.

"Hales, can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Okay say that you wheeled your ex boyfriend around the whole entire hospital having the best time and then came back to his room and noticed that his current girlfriend and mom were standing in the doorway. Should you feel guilty or not?" Brooke asked, hoping she would catch on.

"So your telling me that you wheeled Lucas around the whole entire hospital and then came back laughing until you saw Karen and Peyton in the doorway?" Haley asked and laughed. She loved Brooke's crazy stories, especially when there true like this one.

"Maybe…" Brooke said quietly.

"Well I mean Brooke it's not like you guys were making out or anything right?" Haley asked.

"Right."

"Okay then, you shouldn't feel guilty. You were just trying out the friendship with him."

"Exactly! You know me too well hospital girl." Brooke said and showed her dimpled smile.

"Oh no, are you going to be calling me hospital girl all the time now?" Haley groaned.

"Nope, just until your out of the hospital." Brooke said and laughed. She then grabbed some pudding off of Haley's tray.

Haley laughed and threw a pillow that she was holding at Brooke. Brooke laughed and then suddenly threw the spoon that she was holding. They were both laughing until they heard a knock at the door. It was Nathan.

"Hey Nate, come to check up on your wife?" Brooke asked, stopping the food and pillow fight that was taking place in the hospital room.

"Yes, I am. But I'm also here to tell you that Lucas was asking for you." Nathan said seriously to Brooke. He didn't want to see her get hurt anymore either.

Brooke frowned. Not now, she couldn't go back in there. He needed to be with Peyton, I mean he said so himself that he hadn't spent so much time with her so this was the perfect opportunity.

"Oh uhm, can you tell him that I might be by later?" She asked.

"Brooke…" Haley began.

"No Haley, trust me, I know what I'm doing."

"And that is…?"

"I'm keeping my distance so he can be with Peyton. I mean we can always be friends but he needs to have Peyton now."

Haley sighed.

"I'm going to go in the lobby. I'll catch up with you guys later." Brooke said and walked into the lobby while Nathan went into Lucas' room, promising Haley that he would be back soon.

* * *

Nathan walked into Lucas' room and saw him lying down, confused.

"Where's Brooke?" He asked.

"She's uh, not coming." Nathan replied.

Lucas looked more confused.

"Why not?"

"She was busy." Nathan said quickly. He knew he shouldn't say what the real reason was, Brooke would have killed him. So he made up a lie, which Lucas didn't believe, but he didn't fight it.

"So where's Peyton?" Nathan asked.

"She ran to my house to grab me a few things. I'm leaving here tomorrow." He replied.

"Dude, that's great!" Nathan exclaimed.

"Yeah. So when's Haley getting out?"

"Two days. Brooke is coming back here to help us with her. Then Brooke is going to basically be the maid around the apartment until Haley can get back on her feet." Nathan replied.

Brooke. She was going to be around them for a while. He thought of maybe spending some of his time at Nathan and Haley's apartment.

"That's good that Brooke's going to be helping her. I mean I would, but if you haven't noticed I'm still attached to all these wires and I bet I won't be able to do much after I get out of here." Lucas said with a laugh.

Nathan laughed. "Don't worry about it. I think Brooke has it covered. Who would have known that Brooke Davis would actually know how to take care of someone besides herself?"

Lucas knew. He knew how Brooke was when people were in trouble or hurt. She was always there for them, ready to do something for them. But he guessed he and Peyton were the only ones that knew that. And maybe Haley now.

"She's actually really good at it. She helped a lot around my house when Keith died." Lucas said.

Nathan nodded, not really wanting to get further in this conversation about Brooke.

"Alright well I told Haley I would get back to her. I'll check up on you later, okay?"

Lucas nodded and Nathan left the room.

* * *

Peyton was coming back from Lucas' house when she saw Brooke sitting in the lobby by herself. She came up and sat down next to her.

"Hey Brooke." Peyton greeted.

Brooke jumped.

"Oh, it's just you. Hey Peyton, you scared me!" Brooke exclaimed and then laughed. Peyton laughed too.

"So what are you doing out here?" Peyton asked.

"Oh I was just tired. I saw Haley and then just decided to come and sit."

"Do you want to go and get some coffee together?" Peyton suggested. She was taking the first step to mending their friendship.

"Sure."

They both walked down to the cafeteria to get some coffee and talk about the current events in their life.

* * *

Lucas was lying in bed when he saw Brooke pass by his open door.

"Brooke!" He called out, not very loud but she still heard it.

She walked backwards and looked in his room.

"Did you call me?" She asked.

"Yeah, why didn't you come in here earlier?" He asked.

Brooke felt that uncomfortable ness again. She looked at her feet and tried to think of a good excuse.

"I just figured that you needed some rest. I mean you didn't exactly get any earlier." Brooke said and laughed.

Lucas smiled. "No, I didn't. But you could still have come in."

"Well I just thought that Peyton would be in here keeping you company anyways so I just decided to give you two some time. I really want you guys to have a good relationship Luke."

"Brooke I can still have a good relationship with Peyton while being your friend."

"Yeah, and look how great our relationship turned out when you were friends with Peyton." Brooke said and rolled her eyes.

Lucas grew silent. He knew any response would be wrong to that statement. Luckily, Brooke changed the subject.

"So I heard your getting out of here tomorrow." She said.

"Yeah. My mom and Peyton are going to help me. Do you want to come too?" Lucas asked.

"I'll probably be here. I mean I'm looking after Haley when she gets out."

"Yeah, I heard about that. I think it's great that you are."

"Yeah well, Haley and I are great friends. I wouldn't just abandon her like that. I care about her too much." Brooke said sincerely. She really did care about Haley, she was her best friend.

Lucas nodded, understanding everything that she said. He wanted to have some more fun with her and possibly visit Haley, so he got an idea.

"Okay, so you know how you wheeled me out of here earlier?" He asked.

"Yeah…" Brooke said. She had fun, but she was trying to forget what happened when they came back.

"Well, do you think you could wheel me to Haley's room so I can talk to her?" Lucas asked with a pleading smile.

Brooke wasn't sure she should let him do this. I mean look how great it went last time.

"I don't know Lucas…I mean when we came back Peyton and your mom looked kind of mad…" Brooke began.

"Please Brooke?" He begged.

"Alright, fine. But Lucas Eugene Scott you have to be on your best behavior!" Brooke exclaimed now looking extremely happy.

"Only if you promise to not use my middle name anymore." Lucas said. He hated it when she said his middle name because he himself didn't like it.

"Deal."

* * *

Brooke got him into the wheelchair and peeked her head out of the room to make sure the coast was clear.

"Okay, I think were good to go." Brooke announced and quietly wheeled him out of the room.

Brooke was on guard the whole time they were walking to Haley's room. She didn't want to get caught and she didn't want to cause any trouble. Whenever a nurse or doctor walked by she hit on them so they wouldn't have any suspicions. But for some reason, she could feel Lucas tense up every time she would talk to one of them.

"Has anyone ever told you that you look like McDreamy?" She once asked a doctor. He smiled and walked past her.

"Brooke, I think we'll be okay." Lucas said trying to get her to stop flirting with the doctors.

"No time for thinking!" Brooke yelled half crazed. Lucas laughed. They finally reached Haley's room, both smiling.

"Hospital girl, I kind of brought you a visitor." Brooke smiled showing her dimples.

She wheeled Lucas in the room and set him right beside Haley's bed. She smiled excitedly at Brooke and pulled her into a hug.

"Thank you!" She yelled.

"Hey, don't thank me, Lucas was the one who wanted to be here I just got him out." She said and was walking towards the door.

"I'm going to give you guys a minute." She continued as she slipped out the door.

Haley nodded and turned her attention back to Lucas.

"Hey." She said.

He smiled. "Hi Hales, how are you feeling?"

"Pretty good, I've had a lot of company. You'd think I was putting on a performance in here!"

Lucas laughed. "Yeah well I heard Brooke is going to be taking care of you until you get better."

Haley wondered why he wasn't talking about Peyton, or school or anything else but her and Brooke. I mean he comes in with Brooke, and just days ago he was laughing and talking with her like nothing happened between them.

"What's going on with you guys Luke?" Haley asked.

Lucas tensed up. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean is that you guys broke up a few months ago and then just days ago you both are hanging out and acting like nothing happened between you guys when obviously, a lot did." Haley said. She could feel anger rising in her but she didn't want to start anything.

"Were trying to be friends Hales." Was all he said. He himself wasn't even sure if that's really what it was but he had to keep telling himself that.

"Alright, but don't play with her again Luke. Brooke and I are really good friends and I'll be there for her always. I just…I really don't want her to get hurt again." Haley was almost in tears. She knew how Brooke handled things; with drinking, shutting people out, and sex, lots and lots of sex and one night stands. She hoped that was the old Brooke, but lately she had been so worried about what she was going to do when she actually saw Lucas and Peyton going out in school.

"I know, I don't want to hurt her again either. But I won't." He said making sure Haley understood that it was the last thing he wanted to do. He knew he hurt her, a lot, but he was moving on and Brooke hadn't…yet.

Haley gave a reassuring nod telling him that she understood.

"So how's Peyton?" She asked trying to lighten the mood.

"Great, I just actually haven't talked to her today." He said realizing that he hadn't seen her at all today.

"Oh." Haley said quietly. She wasn't sure how she felt about them being together. She loved when he was with Brooke because they were such good friends. But when she came back from the tour, Peyton was cruel to her. And after that, they hadn't really talked. She wasn't sad or happy that they hadn't talked, she just noticed they hadn't.

"I get out tomorrow." She heard Lucas say. She immediately snapped out of her thoughts and turned her attention back to him.

"Lucky, I get out of here in two days. Want to break me out?" Haley said half serious half jokingly.

"I would, but I think your first call would be Brooke. She helped me break out of my room." He said and smiled, remembering how he had to practically beg her to get him out of there because she was afraid of getting caught. He knew that she was worried about what his mom and Peyton would think but to tell the truth, he wasn't. He didn't really care about what everyone else thought. He used to, but now he just wanted to live his life. After he found out about his HCM he just wanted to live the way he wanted.

"Yeah, she told me about when you guys basically got caught coming back from the tour of the hospital." Haley said laughing.

"Yeah, that's why it took me a lot of begging to get her to take me here. She didn't want the same thing to happen." Lucas said and smiled.

"That doesn't sound at all like Brooke." Haley said laughing. Lucas began laughing too.

"No, I guess not."

Just then Brooke came in the room.

"Hey you guys, sorry to break it up but your supposed to be in your room in about five minutes Luke, and it took us about 10 to get here so I suggest we go because I am not getting in any more trouble here!" Brooke yelled smiling and gently shut the door again.

"See, that's exactly how she was earlier." Lucas said still smiling.

Haley noticed. She noticed the wide smile that he had on and she knew that it was because of Brooke. What she didn't know or wanted to know was how he really felt about her. She was done with his games that he didn't even know he was playing.

"You're happy Luke." She whispered.

"Yeah, I am." He replied confused.

"No, I mean you're happy…with her." She said more clearly.

Lucas stared intensely at her. Haley was his best friend and could read him like a book. She knew what he really wanted and she knew who he wanted all along. Too bad he didn't know himself.

"I'll be by tomorrow after school." He said before wheeling himself to the door that was now open by Brooke. Brooke walked over to Haley to give her one last hug before returning the Lucas and wheeling him out the door.

"Ready for the ride of your life Broody?" She asked.

"Bring it on Cheery." He said and they both laughed.

None of them had even noticed they had said their nicknames. Maybe they didn't want to notice, or maybe they were too caught up in each other to even realize. Whatever it was, they were too scared to admit it.

* * *

_Okay, so what did you think? Please review and tell me! _


	3. Middle

_Okay, so I'm so amazed by all the reviews I got last chapter! Thank you so much to all who reviewed! It made me want to update faster! And just to let you guys know, I'm in no hurry to bring Lucas and Brooke together. Okay, enjoy Chapter 3!_

Chapter 3

Brooke was walking into school when Rachel caught up with her.

"Hey whore." She greeted.

"Not in the mood Rachel." Brooke said not even looking at her.

"Look, I know why you're not in the mood. But you're going to have to see them sometime." Rachel said.

Brooke looked at Rachel. "You don't know what you're talking about."

Rachel shrugged. "Okay, but I'm just telling you what you won't tell yourself."

Rachel walked away and left Brooke standing there in shock. Brooke knew that she didn't want to deal with the drama that was going to come today but she didn't expect Rachel to know. It was times like these that Brooke really missed Haley. But she would be seeing her after school.

Brooke walked in alone for once, and was smiling at Mouth until she saw a certain couple in front of her. It was Lucas and Peyton. She slowed her pace down when she saw them look at her. They took one look at her and walked away.

Brooke couldn't believe it. They were all supposedly trying to be friends but that was pretty hard when they wouldn't take one look at her. Brooke then walked to her next class, thinking that if they didn't want to be friends, neither did she.

It was finally lunch and Brooke was happy to get out of there. Being at school without any of her friends really sucked. She found out that she was failing calculus and she didn't want to tell anyone because it was embarrassing and Brooke Davis didn't do embarrassing. Rachel said she would help her out tonight by stealing the answers to the test so she could get an A. But things just weren't the same. She missed Haley, and Nathan, and even Peyton. She would hang out with Rachel on the days that she didn't have anyone else, but other then those days she missed her friends. Maybe she and Rachel were friends. Not like the friends that confide in each other and that are always laughing and joking around but Rachel had been there for her sometimes. She pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind so she could eat her lunch in peace…until someone showed up at her table.

"Hey Brooke." Said Lucas.

"And you are?" She asked, annoyed.

"What? Brooke, you know who I am." He said a little confused.

"Oh really? Because in the morning you acted like we didn't even know each other." She said and went back to eating.

Lucas ran a hand through his hair and sat down.

"And I'm really sorry about that. It's just; I don't know I thought that you would want us not to be around you anymore."

"I want us to be friends Luke, like before." Brooke said but immediately regretted saying it. The last time they were friends, he ended up kissing her before California.

"I want that too Brooke." He said.

"So no more weirdness right?" She asked.

"No more weirdness." He echoed.

"Okay, see you later, friend." She said and picked up her stuff to go and meet Rachel.

Brooke walked into her and Rachel's house and walked straight upstairs. She didn't want to steal the test because she didn't want to upset Haley, but she needed to graduate because if she didn't, Haley would be even more disappointed.

"Okay Rachel, I've decided that I want to do this but not because I like cheating, but just because I want to graduate." Brooke announced.

Rachel put her hands up in defense. "Hey don't get all rule book with me. I'm just here for the break in."

Brooke rolled her eyes. "I'm going to the hospital to meet Haley and then I'm coming back here to change so we can go. Deal?"

"Deal." Rachel said as Brooke walked out of the door.

* * *

Brooke walked into Haley's room and saw her lying there, looking bored.

"Hey hospital girl!" Brooke exclaimed.

Haley looked up and smiled wide. She missed having people to talk to, especially Brooke.

"I can't wait until I'm out of here so you can stop calling me that." Haley joked.

"Yeah, then it's back to Tutor Girl." Brooke said smiling, showing her dimples.

"Okay, back to business. So school was pretty much boring until I saw Lucas and Peyton making out in the hallway. I looked at them and you know what they did? They walked away! They completely ignored me and walked away."

"But I thought you guys were all trying to be friends." Haley asked confused.

"That's what I thought until the morning! So then it was lunch and Lucas came up to me and started talking to me like we were friends again. So I basically put him in his place and now we are going to be friends like before." Brooke said.

"Like before you guys were dating? Like before when I was on tour and you guys were going to weddings together? Or like before when he kissed you before you left for California?" Haley asked.

"Hales! I know that before when we were friends things were a lot different like…well we fell in love again but this time it will be different because he has a girlfriend. A girlfriend named Peyton who he should have had all along." Brooke said quietly.

Haley sighed. She hated seeing Brooke still hurt over this whole thing.

"Brooke, you know that's not true. He chose to be with you over her many times."

"Yeah but then he would go and hang out with her while I was around doing nothing!" Brooke exclaimed.

Haley looked down.

"Do you remember the first day Lucas and I got back together? He went out with her to go and find Ellie." Brooke said so quiet Haley had to sit up a little to hear her.

"I remember. It was the day that you were working on your 'Clothes Over Bros' line. I was there the whole day." Haley said remembering everything about that day. She knew Brooke was hurt because he wasn't there. She was mad at Lucas that day too; she knew he made the first mistake in that relationship.

"That's right. You were there Hales; you were there the whole time. You were always there for me." Brooke whispered. Haley was there for her even before she knew it.

Brooke got up from her chair and hugged Haley.

"I missed you today." She whispered.

"I missed you too. It was so boring here! I can't wait until I get out." Haley said.

"Yeah, then we can go shopping because you and I both know that we need new clothes and then I was thinking we could stop by the café to grab some food and then…" Brooke was rambling but she couldn't help it. She just wanted her best friend to get up out of the hospital bed and be well again.

Haley gave Brooke a look.

"Or we could just make smores and stay in and watch T.V." Brooke suggested with a crooked smile.

Haley smiled. "I think that's a good idea."

* * *

Brooke got back from visiting Haley to find Rachel all dressed in black.

"Wow, your really excited about this aren't you?" Brooke asked.

Rachel smirked. "If you want to break into the school, you have to dress the part."

Brooke rolled her eyes. "Well I approve anyways."

"Good, because your outfit is sitting on the bed. Be ready in 10." Rachel said as she sauntered out of the room.

Brooke sighed, just wanting to get this whole thing over with.

* * *

They tiptoed into the school as quietly as they could. They passed by the 'Clean Teens' meeting that was going on. Rachel giggled as Brooke just kept her face facing front. She didn't want to get caught.

They finally reached the room and Brooke was now getting jumpy.

"Okay Rachel I just want to get this over with so hand me the key." Brooke demanded.

Rachel didn't fight; she just handed the key to Brooke and kept watch at the door.

Brooke was flipping through folders faster then she ever has before. She made finally saw the folder labeled 'Calculus.'

"Yes!" She hissed and put the answers in her sock. "Let's get out of here!"

Rachel nodded and they began walked down the hall again. The principal caught them asked them what they were doing here so late at night.

Brooke froze on the spot. She didn't think she would get caught. Maybe she should just come clean…no not worth it. Maybe she could just make up a little lie like she forgot her books or something. But before Brooke could say anything, Rachel piped up.

"We were just here for the 'Clean Teens' meeting. We just want a fresh start you know? Change our ways a little bit. It's our senior year, we want to end it on good terms."

The principal turned to Brooke. "Is that true Ms. Davis?"

Brooke nodded and smiled. So Rachel was a quick on her feet, she liked that.

"Okay then, good luck." The principal said and walked back down the hallway.

Brooke let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"That was so close." She said.

"Yeah well now we have to go into that meeting." Rachel said, irritated.

"What, why?" Brooke asked.

"Because he could always check back up on us and they need to at least know us or think that we are serious about this."

Brooke realized Rachel was right; she needed to be a 'Clean Teen.'

"Okay, then let's go." Brooke said and they hurried into the room.

* * *

Brooke collapsed on Rachel's bed exhausted from the night that they had. Rachel came in laughing.

"That was so much fun!" Rachel exclaimed.

"Glad you thought so." Brooke said sarcastically.

"Oh come on, the only thing that sucks is that we have to wear these shirts." Rachel said holding them up to Brooke.

"I guess so." Brooke said. "I'm really tired, I'm going to sleep."

"Goodnight felon." Rachel said as Brooke left the room but Brooke was too tired to come back with anything.

* * *

School the next day was good; Brooke had gotten an A on her test so she was happy about that. She still didn't feel right about cheating, but she had to graduate. She was walking down the hall when Lucas came up to her and started walking next to her.

"So what's this I hear that you're now in the 'Clean Teens' club?" He asked with a smirk.

Brooke smiled. "Well you know, I just wanted my senior year to end clean."

Lucas laughed. "So what's the real reason?"

Brooke didn't want to tell him. Sure they were being friends but he would be disappointed in her if he knew the truth. And then the news would spread back to Haley and she really didn't want to lose another best friend. Her gaze roamed over to the Clean Teens club that was sitting at a table. She saw a dark haired guy, she hadn't seen him around before but he was definitely attractive.

"Okay, okay, I saw a really cute guy. The one right over there." She said and pointed him out.

Lucas took one look at him and was already mad.

"So that's the only reason?" He asked.

"Yep. Now if you'll excuse me, I think I'm going to go socialize with my new club member." Brooke said flashing her dimpled smile before prancing off to meet the new guy.

Lucas sighed as he watched her go to him. He wasn't jealous; he just missed talking to Brooke. She hadn't really been in his life for a long time so he just wanted to spend some time with her. Okay, and maybe he was a little jealous. He was quickly disrupted from his thoughts when Peyton came up and kissed him.

"Hey." She greeted.

"Hey, how've you been? I feel like I haven't talked to you in ages. Or maybe I was just missing you." He said and gave Peyton another kiss.

"Hmm, did I tell you how much I love when you miss me?" She asked.

He laughed and put his arm around her as they walked down the hallway together.

* * *

Brooke walked over to the new guy, and greeted him with a sexy smile.

"Hi, I'm Brooke. Are you in this club?" She asked. She really hoped he was.

"Yeah, I'm Chase." He said and immediately Brooke was nervous. Why was she nervous? She just met this guy and he was already turning her into a wreck.

"Nice to meet you." She said and put her hand out.

"You too. So, are you in this club too?" He asked returning the handshake.

"Yep, I just wanted to end my year clean if you know what I mean." She said and raised an eyebrow.

He laughed. "I know what you mean. I wanted the same thing."

Brooke saw his smile and immediately loved it. And, he had the same excuse she did.

"So Chase, do you have a last name?" She asked.

"Yeah, it's Adams, Chase Adams." He said doing a James Bond impression.

Brooke laughed.

"And what about you, do you have a last name?" He asked.

"As a matter of fact I do. It's Davis, Brooke Davis." She said mocking him.

"Oh okay, I see how it is. I do one impression and you make fun of me for it." He said smiling.

"Yeah, but it doesn't go the other way around. If I make a joke, there's no making fun of me." She said with a smile. She was actually having fun talking to him. He was just so nice and he seemed so genuine.

She wasn't sure if she wanted to jump into a boyfriend just yet. But he was so attractive and cute, and funny, that she was thinking about changing her mind. But then she thought he might have a girlfriend.

"Do you have a girlfriend?" She blurted out.

"Well that was straight forward." He laughed. She really caught him off guard with this one.

Brooke gave a shy smile. "Sorry, I was just curious. If you don't want to tell me that's fine because some people don't like the forward questions because sometimes they just want to gradually get to know each other but I think that the best way to get to know someone is by being completely honest and straight forward…"

"Brooke." He said and cut her off. He found it so cute that she was rambling.

"Yeah?" She asked.

"I don't have a girlfriend." He said.

Brooke smiled. "Oh."

"Yeah, so any more questions you want to blurt out to me? Because like you, I agree that you need to be forward and honest when you are getting to know someone. Honesty is the best policy."

"Agreed. Well I was also wondering if you're really a virgin because this whole club is full of them and I was just thinking that maybe someone had a secret like they weren't or something and…"

"Wow you really like rambling don't you?" He asked and laughed.

"It's the best way." She said.

"Well if you can keep a secret, yes I'm a virgin. I wanted to come here to get my mind off of girls and actually focus on school for once. But seeing that I met you I think that's basically in the gutter now."

Brooke loved his answer. Should she come clean about the whole 'I'm not a virgin either' thing? If she was being honest about it now, she would just have to be honest all the way through.

"Well, good news for you, I can keep a secret." She said.

"And what about you? Are you really a virgin?" He asked.

She didn't mind his questions. She found them cute, and she loved watching him squirm. He was so kind, even when he was being honest.

"No, I'm not. But I would like to keep that under wraps in this whole club because if they find out I'm afraid they would like kick me out or something." She said and laughed.

He laughed too. "If they did, I would talk them into bringing you back. You know you really are a lot of fun to talk to."

"So I've heard." She said grinning.

"Well it was nice to meet you but I have to get to class. Maybe I'll see you around later?" He asked.

"I'd like that." Brooke said. He smiled and walked away. She was now fully in a good mood. She had to tell Haley all that happened today. And then she would go to the Clean Teens meeting. Maybe being a Clean Teen wasn't going to be so bad, especially if Chase Adams was going to be there.

* * *

_Okay what did you think? Please review and tell me what you guys think! _


	4. Midnight Show

Okay well here's Chapter 4! Sorry that it took so long for me to update, I've been extremely busy! Okay well enough talk enjoy Chapter 4! And thank you so much to all that reviewed my last chapter they were great!

**Chapter 4**

The next day Brooke went to the hospital. Haley was getting out today and she promised that she would be there to help her. Little did she know, Lucas was going to be there too.

"Hey hospital girl!" Brooke greeted when she walked into the room. Nathan was helping Haley out of bed and into a wheelchair.

"Only 15 minutes until you can stop calling me that." Haley said.

Brooke rolled her eyes and grinned.

"I've missed you Hales, school has been so dull…" Brooke began.

"Oh you mean besides your new love named Chase?" Haley joked.

Just then Lucas came in.

"What new love?" He asked as he walked in.

"Oh nothing…" Brooke began again. She wasn't sure if she wanted Lucas to know.

"Brooke's new guy. His name is Chase Matthews. She didn't tell you?" Haley asked.

Brooke knew what she was really trying to do and Brooke didn't like any of it.

"Oh was that the guy that you were talking about who was in the Clean Teens club?" He asked. He remembered how he felt when he saw her prance after him. He hated it.

"Yeah." Brooke said shyly.

"How are things going with him?" Lucas asked. He knew he was basically grilling her, but he wanted to know all about this Chase guy.

"Well were not in a relationship or anything but so far things are going amazingly well actually. I mean, we talked for a while yesterday and today were going to study together." Brooke said with a smile on her face. She didn't even know it was there.

Lucas saw her smile, it was the genuine smile that she used to give him. He missed it at that moment. He was mad at Chase for making her so happy when all he did was cause her pain. Then he realized she said 'studying'.

Haley must have noticed too because they were both looking at Brooke suspiciously.

"Studying?" They both asked at the same time.

"Yeah, after school. Don't look at me like that I want to study with him!" Brooke exclaimed still feeling their confused stares.

"Are you sure it's just studying?" Haley asked with her eyebrows raised.

Brooke picked up a pillow and threw it at her.

"Yes Haley we are just studying. He's a Clean Teen for goodness sake!" Brooke yelled as Haley and Lucas kept laughing.

"So Luke how are things with Peyton, have you slept with her yet?" Brooke asked. The laughter stopped and Lucas looked at Brooke with seriousness.

Brooke smiled, happy that her comment made them go quiet.

"Uh huh, I thought that would shut you two up!"

"Okay Hales, are you ready to go?" Nathan asked walking into the room.

"Oh yes!" Haley exclaimed and Nathan wheeled her out. Brooke and Lucas trailed behind them, whispering.

"So Luke, how are things with Peyton really?" Brooke asked.

"Really good. Things are going really great."

And Brooke knew it was true. She had seen them kiss in the hallway, she knew they were hanging out constantly, and she also knew that everybody thought they were great together. She just sometimes felt like she was forgotten about. And she hated being forgotten.

"I'm really happy for you Luke." Brooke said sincerely.

"Thanks, me too." He replied.

"So how are you holding up Broody?" She asked to try and lighten up the mood.

"I'm fine. It's just… were friends right?" He asked. For some reason he hated saying friends.

"Right…" She said still confused as to what he was getting at.

"So I can tell you something that's really serious then?"

"Yeah, go ahead, I'm all ears." She said.

"Okay you have to promise not to tell anyone and your probably going to think that it's really weird and suspicious but…"

"Luke, you're rambling. I won't tell and I probably won't think it's weird. You can trust me." Brooke said.

Lucas took a deep breath.

"I don't think Jimmy killed Keith."

Brooke at first was floored, but then she thought about it and thought that if Lucas thought so, he probably wasn't crazy. I mean yeah, he did come up with some weird conclusions but for some reason, she knew this wasn't one of them.

"I don't think it's weird Lucas." Brooke whispered after a couple of minutes.

Lucas was relieved. Everyone that he had told had said that it was just in his head and that he needed to move on. But not Brooke, he should have expected her to understand a little.

"Thanks. It seems like people have been telling me that every time I talk about it."

"I'm not saying your wrong, but…why do you think that?" She asked, careful not to act like she thought he was lying. She didn't think he was, but she just needed a reason.

"I had a dream when I was in the hospital Brooke. I saw Keith and he was trying to get me to open my eyes. I was confused at first but now I know what he was talking about. I don't think Jimmy killed Keith."

"And I know your probably thinking that it was just a dream but it wasn't Brooke, it was so real and it really got me thinking. I just…I don't know what to do now."

"Have you told Peyton about it?" Brooke asked. She didn't want to, but she had to.

"Yeah, but she thinks that it might have just been a dream, nothing else."

"Well dream or no dream, it means something. I think dreams symbolize something all the time. I don't think your wrong Luke." Brooke said.

Lucas smiled. "Thanks for understanding Brooke."

"No problem." They looked at each other for seconds, but then they heard Haley yelling 'are you guys coming?' and realized that they had been standing there. They snapped back to reality and Brooke blushed while Lucas looked at his feet.

"Yeah, were coming." Brooke said breaking the silence. They both walked after Haley together, not mentioning the subject at all.

* * *

They all arrived at Nathan and Haley's apartment. Brooke and Nathan helped Haley inside while Lucas opened the door for them. Haley was whining the whole way home.

"Now can I go back to it?" She whined.

"Nope, just a few steps more…" Brooke began.

She helped Haley into the house and onto the couch. Brooke stood back up and clapped her hands together.

"Okay! Now I can start calling you Tutor Girl again." Brooke said and sat down next to Haley.

"Thank you!" Haley yelled with an exasperated sigh.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Brooke said and rolled her eyes.

"Okay, well I'm going to get going. I'm supposed to meet up with Peyton in 15 minutes. Hales, if you need anything just call me. Same goes with you and Nathan. And Brooke, we should hang out sometime." Lucas said and waved to everyone before leaving the apartment.

"Nathan, do you mind giving Brooke and me some alone time? I have to talk to her about something." Haley asked.

"Sure. I'll be in our room if you need me." Nathan said and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead before retreating to their bedroom.

Haley turned and faced Brooke.

"Okay, you are so telling me what's going on between you and Chase!" Haley exclaimed.

Brooke smiled wide.

"It's different Haley, he's just so sweet and kind, and really funny. I've never really felt like this with anyone besides…"Brooke trailed off.

"Lucas." Haley finished.

"Right. And that makes me even more scared. I mean Hales, what if I'm falling in love all over again?" Brooke asked. She was really worried that if she did fall for Chase, he would end up breaking her heart just like Lucas did.

"I think if your falling in love again then you should be happy and enjoy it while it lasts. High school's ending Brooke. Have as much fun as you can." Haley encouraged.

"So your saying go after him?" Brooke asked.

Haley nodded. "Definitely go after him Brooke."

Brooke squealed. "Oh thank you Haley! I am so glad I got to talk to somebody about this. I was so worried I would have to just decide by myself and the last time I don't think I had the best judgment."

Haley smiled. "You can always talk to me Brooke, about anything. But you already know that."

"Yeah, I do." Brooke said sincerely. She knew she could talk to Haley about everything, and she did. Haley was the only one that she actually listened to and that was rare. The only people she listened to before were Peyton or Lucas, but right now she didn't really fully trust either of them. And then she just grew so close to Haley and now she didn't really want to go to anyone else.

"Okay well I have to go study with Chase but I'll be back tomorrow okay?"

"Don't worry about me, I've got Nathan to take care of me and you and I still have that hot chocolate and smores night. I'm holding you to it."

"And I'm sticking to it too." Brooke said and stuck her tongue out before hugging Haley and prancing out the door.

Haley laughed and said, "You gotta love her."

* * *

Brooke raced to the library. She was relieved when she found Chase sitting there reading a book. She felt bad for making him wait.

"Hey Chase, I am so sorry about being late I was just with Haley and I lost track of time…"

"Brooke don't worry about it. I only got here five minutes ago." He reassured.

Brooke sighed. "Okay good."

Chase just smiled at her. "So what do you want to start with first? We have History, Science, English Lit, or we could do Calculus." Chase suggested.

Brooke smiled, showing her dimples. "I say anything but Calculus."

Chase laughed and she did too.

"I like the sound of that." He said as he opened up a History textbook.

* * *

Lucas walked into Peyton's room and saw her on her bed drawing.

"Hey Peyt, sorry I'm late I was just checking up on Haley." Explained Lucas.

"It's okay, just as long as you're here now." Peyton said pulling him into a kiss.

"Oh yeah, I'm here now." He said and gave her another one.

Peyton pulled away and Lucas sat down on the bed next to her.

"So how is Haley?" She asked.

"She's doing good. Nathan and Brooke are helping her all day so she should be fine." He replied.

"How's Brooke?" Peyton asked. She hadn't talked to Brooke since the hospital and she wanted to talk more but she just couldn't find the chance.

"Well she was pretty mad that we ignored her in the hallway. But I explained it to her and she understood."

"I'm glad you explained it to her. I felt bad for not talking but I just didn't know if she was going to lash out or talk to us."

"I'm guessing she would have talked to us. Brooke's over the angry faze. She just wants to be friends." Lucas said. He wanted people to believe that Brooke was trying to make peace and that she wasn't a jealous conniving witch people thought her out to be.

"That's good, because I want to be friends with her too."

Lucas nodded.

"But what about you? Are you okay with being friends with her?" She asked.

"Yeah, I'd rather have her as a friend then nothing at all."

Peyton nodded. She kind of wished that Lucas just didn't want to be friends with her at all. She just felt insecure when Lucas talked about Brooke.

Just then Lucas' cell phone rang. It was Brooke.

"Hello?" He asked.

"Who is it?" Peyton whispered.

He mouthed 'Brooke'. Peyton nodded. She wasn't sure if she liked how Brooke was calling Lucas this late at night.

"Okay, I'll be right there." He said and shut his phone.

Peyton snapped out of her thoughts when she heard 'I'll be right there.' She didn't like the sound of that.

"Brooke's car won't start. She's at school. She said she would have asked Nathan but he needs to help Haley and Rachel is out at a party. Do you mind?" He asked.

"No, and it's better if you go alone. I don't think I'm ready to face Brooke with you just yet." Peyton said truthfully. Even though she didn't want Lucas to go alone, she figured her thoughts were just a ramble. So she ignored them. She also didn't want Brooke to feel like she was being ambushed.

Lucas nodded. "Okay then, I'll see you tomorrow."

He gave her a quick kiss and was out the door to go and get Brooke.

* * *

He saw Brooke waiting outside next to her car. He pulled up and walked over to her.

"Hey." He said.

"Oh thank god you're here! I got into my car and then Chase left and then my car wouldn't start. I didn't want to call him back just so he could drive all the way back here. I'm sorry I called I know your were in the middle of something with Peyton…" Brooke began.

Lucas cut in. "Brooke don't worry, she understood."

Brooke breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh good."

"Okay, so what happened?" Lucas asked pulling up the hood of the light blue beetle bug he remembered so fondly.

"Well it just wouldn't start. I have no clue about cars, that's your area of expertise." She said and put her arms in the air.

Lucas laughed.

"Okay, I know what to do. I just have to connect these cords and…done. Good as new." He said and closed the hood.

Brooke looked at him and smiled. "Thank you Lucas! Your such a great friend!" She yelled and then hugged him. They stayed like that for a little while until Brooke caught herself. She pulled away and laughed nervously.

Lucas cleared his throat. "So tell me, how was the studying?"

"Amazingly good. He's just so sweet Lucas, and funny and nice." Brooke said and Lucas could tell she was falling for him. He didn't want to admit that she was because that would mean she was over him and officially moving on. Not that he didn't want her to; he just wanted her alone for a little while. But he was with Peyton now, so she could have someone too, no matter how much he hated it. And he also wanted to remain close friends with her and he figured that might be hard if she is wrapped up with Chase.

"That's great, I'm really happy for you Brooke." He said. It wasn't a lie but it definitely wasn't the truth either. He was jealous, he was jealous and he knew it. He couldn't deny it. But now he had to _see_ it. They had studied together which meant that now they would be seen walking down the halls together. He remembered in the hospital when he saw her hugging Nathan. He couldn't handle it then, and he definitely wouldn't be able to handle it now.

"Thanks Luke. You know, I'm really glad things are finally going way for us. We deserve it."

Lucas smiled. "Yeah we do don't we?"

Brooke nodded. "Well thanks Luke. It was nice talking to you even if it's like ten o' clock at night." She joked.

Lucas laughed. "It's the best time to talk."

Now it was Brooke's turn to laugh. She enjoyed talking to Lucas, it was always fun.

"Well I should get going. I'll see you around." She said and gave him one last hug. Lucas savored it and then she let go and got into her car and drove away.

"I'll see you around Brooke Davis." He whispered as he watched her drive away.

* * *

How was it? Like it? I hope so! Tell me your opinion by pressing that little button! 


	5. From The Heart

**A/N: ** Sorry for the long wait! I've just been so busy. But I wanted to tell you that I sincerely appreciate all of the reviews I've gotten so far. And Linkie, thank you so much! Your review made me feel better! Okay, here's Chapter 5! Enjoy!

Chapter 5

As usual, school went on. Brooke still kept on seeing Chase and Lucas kept on seeing Peyton. They were all in class together talking, until their teacher spoke up.

"Okay class, new project. This side of the room write your names down and the other side of the room draw the names."

Everybody looked at each other, waiting for an explanation.

"For 50 minutes, you and your partner will be seeing outside of the labels you are put in. There are 5 objectives on the cards you get. You must complete all of them, no trying to get out of this. It counts for your grade."

Groans and sighs were heard throughout the classroom. Everyone gave their friends an 'are you serious?' look. The teacher continued.

"Okay, now that you got all of your complaints out. Time to partner you up."

The teacher had the students on the right side pick names while the other side waited for their name to get called.

"Hey Brooke." Peyton whispered.

Brooke looked at her, confused. Peyton showed her Chases' name on her paper and Brooke understood.

"Thank you." She said sincerely. Peyton nodded, content with having Nathan as a partner.

"Okay everybody the partners are Lucas and Glenda, Brooke and Chase, Peyton and Nathan, Haley and Skillz, and Rachel and Bevin. And…Go!" The teacher yelled. The students scrambled out of the classroom and into rooms where they could start, and get this project over with.

* * *

Chase and Brooke found an empty classroom. Brooke still hadn't told him about the Calculus test and she felt really bad about it. She wanted to be honest with him, but she was afraid he'd stop talking to her or worse, judge her. Since they had only been on a study date, she figured that honesty would make their relationship better. She hadn't really had that with Lucas in the beginning, well she was honest but he wasn't. And like she said, honesty is the best policy.

"Chase." Brooke began. He sat down and looked at her.

"I have to tell you something." She said.

"Okay, spill." He replied.

"Now, I know that we both agreed that honesty was the best policy so that is why I'm telling you this."

He nodded.

"Well when I told you my reason for being a Clean Teen, I wasn't exactly honest about it. You see, I'm only a Clean Teen because I got caught stealing answers for a Calculus test. I was with Rachel and we both just figured that if we said we were in the Clean Teens then the principal wouldn't be so suspicious. Long story short I took the test and got an A but now the principal knows answers were stolen. I just thought you should know before they expose me or before we get serious." She said, meaning every word.

She thought Chase would have left the room, started throwing things, or yelled. But when she saw him, he was calm and smiled.

"I understand Brooke. I'm just glad you told me." He said.

Brooke breathed a sigh of relief.

"So your not mad at me?" She asked.

"Mad at you? Brooke, that's really hard to tell someone and just that you told me because you wanted to be honest and maybe take our relationship into something more serious just makes me like you even more." He said. Brooke's frown turned into a wide smile.

"Oh, okay then." She said. There was a moment of silence and then Chase spoke.

"Do you feel bad about it?" He asked. Brooke looked down at her feet. Of course she felt bad about it, she didn't like being a cheater or stealing or lying to her best friend but she had to. She needed to graduate, and it seemed like this was the only way.

"Yeah, I really do." She said with real honesty.

"Then you can fix it." He said and hugged her. Brooke nodded and hugged him back.

"Now let's take those pictures." Chase said and Brooke smiled.

* * *

Lucas and Glenda didn't really hit it off well in the beginning of the project. Him not knowing her name pretty much made her angry at him until he showed her something that made her smile. He pulled out a first copy to the novel he wrote.

"I wanted someone to look at it and I thought you would be perfect for it." He said.

She smiled; surprised that he trusted something this big with her. But she figured that she should give him a chance since he was being bold. "Thanks, I'll read it and get back to you."

"Sounds good. I'm really sorry about not knowing your name." He said sincerely.

"It's okay, I didn't really expect you to. I'm basically invisible to everyone."

"That's not true…" Lucas said trying to comfort her.

"Yes it is, and that's fine. It's how it always has been. Everyone has ignored me except for Brooke. We started talking a little while ago."

"Brooke Davis?" He asked.

"Yeah, when the whole school shooting scenario was going on we were both trapped in the gym together. We talked and ever since then she kept in touch. I heard you used to date her."

"Yeah, I did until just a couple of months ago actually." His head drooped down a little, remembering the whole night and the affects afterwards.

"What happened?" She asked.

"You know Peyton? The girl I'm going out with now?" He asked. She nodded.

"Well that used to be her best friend. I cheated on Brooke with her while we were together but then she gave me a second chance because I fell in love with her. But then she just springs all of this on me how we never have a real conversation and how I'm so far away. So I spent time with Peyton and now I'm with her." Lucas explained.

"So you aren't actually with her because you like her?" Glenda asked confused.

"No, no I like her. It's just Brooke breaking up with me kind of led me to her because we spent so much time together." He said. He knew that it was the reason they were together. He'd been trying to deny it but every time he thought about it, every time he analyzed it, that was the only conclusion that he came up with. And it was the right one.

"So was Brooke mad about it?"

"Well if she was, she covered it up really easily. She basically told me to go to her. And we got together the night of the big championship game." Lucas said.

"That's great, considering Brooke has Chase now."

Lucas winced. He still didn't like thinking about Brooke and Chase. He didn't really want to think about Brooke with anyone else. He was plain jealous and he hated it. Most of the time he just wanted to wring Chase's neck. But he saw how happy he made Brooke so he stayed away.

"Yeah, they look good." Lucas choked out.

"You sound happy for them." Glenda said sarcastically.

"I am it's just weird to see them together." He replied.

"Because you still care about her?" She asked.

"I'll always care about her. She was my first love." He said and quickly drifted off to the night where they said their first 'I love you's'. He would always remember that night and it would always remain special in his heart, and that scared him.

"And maybe only love." She said.

"Let's just take that picture." Lucas laughed nervously and she nodded.

* * *

Haley and Skillz were on the roof top talking. They really never talked before and Haley was worried it would be awkward.

"So Skillz, tell me something. When did you start to love basketball like my obsessed husband?" She asked.

"I've always loved it. Ever since I saw the lines drawn on the pavement at the river court, man I just knew it's what I wanted to do. I hope I can still do it after high school."

Haley saw how worried he looked about getting in. "You'll make it Skillz, I know you will."

"Thanks Haley." He saw her looking at her belly. "That kid is going to definitely be an athlete dawg. He's got the Scott curse."

Haley laughed. "I know, that's what I'm afraid of."

"Your scared to be a mom?" He asked.

"Well…yeah. I always thought that I could do it but now, seeing it and realizing I'm having a baby, I just don't know anymore. I don't feel as confident." She answered honestly.

"Your gonna be a great mom Hales. I know you will." Skillz said, repeating what Haley told him.

"You know, you and I are a lot a like." She said.

"Yeah, I can see that too. And since I can trust you, would you mind seeing if I got in?" He asked and handed her an envelope.

Haley smiled wide. "I'd love to!"

She ripped open the envelope and read what it said. She looked at Skillz with a sad face.

"Yo dawg, that face don't look so good…" He said worriedly.

"You got in!" She exclaimed and hugged him.

"You definitely had me there for a second…" He said after they hugged.

"I know I did, that's what made it more fun." She said playfully and stuck out her tongue.

"Alright, alright come on, we still have to take a picture." He said and they went and posed.

* * *

Nathan and Peyton sat in the gym on the bleachers. She was lying down and he was sitting up holding a basketball.

"So Nathan, you're going to be a daddy!" She exclaimed playfully.

He laughed. "I know and I'm so freaked out about it."

She sat up. "Really? You seem really relaxed about it so far."

"Yeah, so far. I'm so afraid that I won't know what to do."

"Well Nathan, you're not supposed to. I mean it's your first kid your going to make mistakes but you'll also learn from them. I mean look how our relationship was, you learned from that and now your married." She said and laughed at the end.

"Your so right. I'm married and not too long ago I was dating you. I really have grown."

Peyton cringed. "Ouch, okay that really wasn't necessary I was trying to be all sincere dude."

"Okay sorry, sorry." He said and smiled.

"You know, we haven't really hung out in a while." She said quietly.

"I know, you're always with Lucas!" He exclaimed. She looked at him angrily. He laughed.

"It was a joke Peyton."

"Oh yeah? Well so is this!" She yelled and took the ball from him and went running onto the court.

"Hey!" He yelled and chased after her. She shot the ball and didn't make it. He grabbed the rebound.

"Nice shot." He said.

"I tried." She said and shrugged. "And anyways I just beat Nathan Scott with running!"

"Your so immature." He mocked.

"Oh yeah? Well I wasn't until I met you!" She yelled and slapped him on the arm.

"Ow! Okay truce! Maybe it's time for us to take those pictures…" Nathan said and shook his head.

"Deal." She said and they got ready to take the picture.

* * *

Bevin and Rachel had been in the girls' bathroom for 20 minutes and they hadn't really talked about anything. Rachel had lit up a roll and Bevin sat there in disgust.

"Rachel, what happened to you? You're smoking pot now?" Bevin asked.

"I'm surprised you haven't already. You usually go for that stuff." She snapped.

"You know, all of you think that I'm so dumb and that all I know is cheerleading and boys. But the truth is, I get all A's for my grades, I work hard, and cheerleading is at the bottom of my list." She said.

Rachel looked at her, surprised.

"Bevin I didn't…" Rachel began.

"Know?" She finished. "I know you didn't because you didn't care to. And that's fine, because I let you believe it because I knew in the end it didn't matter." Bevin said.

"What do you mean?" Rachel asked.

"Nobody cares what you did in high school Rachel. Nobody will care if you tell them that you got all the guys or if you won prom queen or if you were a cheerleader. Because that was in the past. And I realized that way before you." She said. She didn't say it in a mean way, just a way that made Rachel re-think some things.

"I'm really sorry Bevin." Rachel said.

"It's okay, were still friends Rachel." Bevin reassured and hugged a now tearful Rachel.

"How about that picture?" Bevin asked.

Rachel nodded and took a picture of them hugging.

* * *

All of the partners returned to the classroom with their pictures. Chase and Brooke sat next to each other followed by Glenda and Lucas, Haley and Skillz, Nathan and Peyton, and Rachel and Bevin.

"Okay class, you will see everyone's pictures at the end of the year." The teacher said. Just then the bell rang. "And now you can go."

The class all filed out when Brooke went up to Glenda.

"Hey how are you?" She asked. She hadn't checked up on her for a little while and she missed her.

"I'm actually good. Lucas was really nice." She replied.

"That's good. He's been really nice to me lately too." She said quietly.

"He still cares about you, you know." Glenda said after a few moments of silence.

"What?" Brooke asked and looked up at her, surprised.

"He said he'll always care about you." Glenda repeated.

"Oh, well…I'll always care about him too." She said trying to wave it off but she knew she couldn't, because now that sentence would be circling her head for the rest of the night and maybe even the rest of the week.

"Okay well I have to go, my mom's waiting."

"Why don't I walk with you?" She asked. Just then Lucas came up to her.

"Hey Glenda, I was just thinking that we could walk out together." He suggested.

Glenda looked at Brooke and Lucas. "I guess you both are going to walk me out then."

Lucas looked confused.

"I asked her too." Brooke said. Lucas smiled, glad that Brooke was coming along too.

"Sounds good to me." He said and the three of them walked out together, with her mom watching the whole time.

* * *

Okay so how was it? Good? Okay? I'm changing a lot of things that happened this season because I hate the way it's going so far. But reviews are crucial so please tell me what you think! 


	6. Hurt

Okay, so you all are probably really mad that I haven't updated and I have to say, I'm mad at myself too! I'm so sorry that this took so long to get out but here's some good news, I'm posting the next chapter either tonight or tomorrow so keep a lookout for that! And the reviews were so amazing for the last chapter that I just have to say a huge thanks to all that reviewed. They really made my day and got me writing faster even though I was so busy. Well here's chapter 6 with 7 coming soon!

Chapter 6

The next day at school was pretty much the same, there was the occasional moments where Brooke and Rachel were on their guard (well mostly Brooke), and there were also the occasional lies that they had to tell to keep everyone from finding out they stole the test answers. But other then that, everything was going pretty good.

Brooke and Chase had been going out for a little while now, and Brooke was being careful with her heart and his. She knew about his past and how his last girlfriend cheated on him because he didn't want to sleep with her. She knew that, and she wanted to make sure he understood she wasn't going to do anything to make him feel like he had to. She was fine waiting, her mind wasn't on having sex, it was about love. Not that it hadn't been love last time with Lucas but this time, this time she was being extremely careful. She walked down the hallway confidently and saw Haley standing by her locker.

"Hey Hales." She greeted.

"Oh hey Brooke. I have to ask you something and I really don't want to but Principal Turner is being really hard on us for it… okay I'm going to get right to the point, did you steal the Calculus answers?" She asked.

If there was any time that Brooke could feel horrible, it was now. She couldn't tell her the truth because that would mean that either she could get in huge trouble or that Haley and her friendship could be over with. She didn't want either.

"No, I didn't." She said simply.

Haley breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay, good. I felt bad for asking but I just had to. I knew you wouldn't do it though."

Brooke laughed a nervous laugh. "Of course not. And I understand that you had to ask me so don't worry about it, okay?"

"Okay. Listen I'm going to go talk to Nathan. He's having some troubles with his mom so…"

"Oh, Deb problems?" She asked.

"Oh yeah. She stormed into our apartment like a mad women. Remember that one night?"

"Oh yeah! Is that when she pumbled you to the ground like a linebacker?" Brooke asked.

"Yeah, I'd rather not think about it." Haley said and looked down.

"Sorry." Brooke said sincerely. She jokes about it now, but she remembered how much of a nervous wreck she had been that night. "Okay now go to Nathan because I know that if you stick around here much longer we are just going to start talking about him and he's not my husband, he's yours. So scoot!"

"Okay okay. Bye Brooke. I'll call you later." Haley said and walked down the hallway and over to the gym.

* * *

Haley walked into the gym and immediately saw Nathan shooting some baskets. 

"Hey mister, basketball is over which means you now have to pay all of your attention to your beautiful pregnant wife." Haley joked.

"My favorite thing to do." Nathan said and put the basketball down to go and give his wife a kiss.

"Okay so the reason I came here was to talk about your mom. I know your upset about the whole situation so I wanted to help you with it."

"Hales, you know my family our problems have been around for ages and can't be solved." Nathan said.

"I didn't say I would try and solve them, I said I would help you with them. So I was thinking about how she's getting out soon and how you kind of wanted to watch out for her so I was thinking that maybe we should move into your house." Haley said.

"Hales…" Nathan began.

"No Nathan this might actually be a good idea. I mean think about it, we wouldn't have to pay rent because we would be living in your house which means that we would have more money for the baby and then we could keep an eye out for your mom at the same time." She explained.

Nathan looked at his wife and smiled.

"You know your right, I really should be paying more attention to my beautiful _and_ genius wife." He said and she laughed.

"So are we moving?" She asked excitedly.

"You sound excited." Nathan said. "Do you remember what she did last time we saw her?"

"Yeah, but I mean she is your mom and anyways I'm doing this for you."

Nathan sighed. "Were moving in."

Haley squealed and gave Nathan a huge hug and kiss.

"Hey since were moving in, I was thinking that we should throw a party." Nathan suggested.

"Sounds fun. Count me in. I'll go and tell Brooke and then well…everyone should know." Haley said and laughed. Nathan laughed too, knowing that Brooke didn't tell secrets but when it came to parties, her mouth was open wide.

"I really am excited about this more money thing." Haley said smiling.

"Uh huh. Me too especially now that we don't have to worry about rent."

Haley nodded and then realized something. "Now I can go baby shopping with Brooke!"

"Hales, you do know how much she spends right?" He asked worriedly.

"Yes but you do remember that your wife can limit herself right?"

"I do, sorry." He said and gave her a kiss.

"Forgiven."

* * *

Brooke walked into the library after school where she was meeting Chase. She saw him reading a book. She smiled, and walked over and sat down next to him at a table. 

"Hey Chase." She said nervously.

She didn't know why but she was always nervous around him. She thought it was just because he was cute at first, but now it was like every time she was around him she would get butterflies. And then she got nervous because if she was falling for him, she wondered if she would get hurt again.

"Hey Brooke. I heard about Principal Turner's rampage about finding who stole the Calculus tests. You okay?" He asked.

Leave it to Chase to make her day better.

"Yeah, I just…I had to lie to Haley. I hate lying, especially to Haley."

Chase put his arm around her. "I know you feel bad, and I'm sure that pretty soon, you're going to tell her. But for now, you don't have to."

"Thanks Chase you've really helped me the past few weeks. I feel like I feel better because of you. When I met you I was a mess basically. But now, I feel better." Brooke laughed. "This must sound really cheesy."

"It does, but I love cheesy." He said and leaned in to kiss her. Just then her cell phone rang.

"Ugh." Brooke sighed. She said one minute and saw that it was Haley. She told Chase that she needed to go because Haley's voicemail said that it was really important. He understood, and she gave him a kiss on the cheek before leaving.

* * *

Brooke marched into Haley's house worried that something went wrong. 

"Hales!" Brooke called. No answer. "Tutor girl!" Nothing. "Haley James Scott!"

Just then Haley came running out of her room, excited.

"Hey Brooke! You got my message, good. Okay I have some news to tell you." Haley said.

"Hales, your scaring me what is this all about?" Brooke asked.

"It's nothing bad don't worry. Its just Nathan and I are moving into Deb's house so we can take care of her and save money for when our baby comes." Haley explained.

Brooke breathed a sigh of relief but then grew angry. "I thought something happened to you!"

"Sorry to make you worry. I just wanted to tell you that we threw together a party tonight at Deb's house so we wanted you to come."

Brooke smiled. "Hales, you know I love you but I cannot believe you called me out here just to hear about a party! I mean don't get me wrong parties and I go together very well but I was in the middle of something with Chase!"

Haley looked at her seriously. "You were with Chase?"

"Yes! And he was just about to kiss me when you called." She explained.

"And you actually stopped everything just to come over here?" She asked.

"Yes!"

"I am so sorry Brooke. I didn't mean to. I just didn't know." Haley said. She felt bad.

"Hales don't worry about it. Maybe it was like a sign saying that we should go slower." Brooke said trying to make her feel better.

"Or I just have incredibly bad timing." Haley said. Brooke laughed.

"Speaking of bad timing, did I mention that Rachel stole the Calculus answers? I knew it was her."

Brooke looked down at the floor, and was shocked at the same time.

"She did?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah, can you believe it? Now my tutoring job is done!" Haley exclaimed.

"What? Why didn't you tell me?" Brooke asked.

"I didn't want to worry you or anything. Even though I'm really mad at Rachel."

"I'll have to talk to her." Brooke said and Haley nodded unsurely.

"Let's not dwell on it. Let's just get ready for the party!" Brooke said and pulled Haley up from the couch so they could get ready and set up for the party while Brooke tried to avoid the guilt in the pit of her stomach.

* * *

The party was in full swing when everyone got there. Lucas and Peyton arrived, along with Mouth, Skillz, Junk, Fergie, Rachel and Chase. Lucas and Peyton were standing there while Brooke and Chase were across the room talking. 

"So Lucas, I was thinking that maybe we should try out the huge bed upstairs." Peyton said.

Lucas smiled. "I thought you wanted to wait?"

"I'm done waiting. I just want you now." She said.

Lucas nodded and they held hands while walking up the stairs.

* * *

The music was blaring and everyone was hanging out. Rachel was dancing and was having fun, until Haley came up to her. All of her anger was ready to be poured out you could tell, and that wasn't the only thing that was poured out. 

"What was that for?" Rachel yelled after she felt a liquid spilled all over her.

"That was for making me lose my tutoring job!" Haley said. And then slapped Rachel across the face.

"And that's for trying to sleep with my husband!" She yelled.

"You're lucky you're pregnant." Was all Rachel said. She stormed out of the room and brushed past Brooke.

Brooke grabbed her arm. "Rachel wait!"

They walked outside and were now facing each other.

"Rachel…" Brooke began.

"It's okay Brooke." She said.

"No, it's not okay Rachel. You covered for me. And you just got beat up by a pregnant woman who shouldn't even be hitting you in the first place! It's my fault Rachel how is that okay?" Brooke exclaimed.

"Were friends Brooke. That's what makes it okay. Even though we were rocky at first, we became friends."

"But Rachel, what's going to happen to you now?" Brooke asked worriedly.

"Who knows? Now for the important thing…Chase. Go in and be with him!" Rachel said.

"Rachel…I can't just leave you out here. Why don't I just go home with you and we can stay in…"

"No, you are not coming home just because of me. Now get your bitchy ass back in here so you can have some fun with a great guy who likes you." Rachel said and laughed.

Brooke smiled a sad smile and hugged Rachel. "Thank you. I'll see you tonight."

Rachel hugged her back and nodded. She then turned and left to go home and clean up.

* * *

Haley and Skillz were talking about how she basically knocked out Rachel. 

"You showed her whose boss dawg!" He yelled.

Haley smiled sheepishly. Just then something caught Skillz' eye.

"What's this? 'Nathan Scores?'" He asked.

"Oh it's probably just another one of his basketball tapes, he has a ton." Haley laughed.

"Nothing like seeing little Nate shooting hoops. Yo Fergie, pop it in dawg." He said.

Fergie rushed over and put the tape in. It started playing and images of Nathan doing slam-dunks and making all of his shots appeared on the screen.

* * *

Brooke walked outside and sat down on a bench. She was feeling horrible and not even Chase could make her feel better. How could she have underestimated Rachel? She thought that they weren't really friends because she had Haley but this just proved that they were a lot better friends then she thought. Then she thought of Peyton and how she hadn't talked to her in a while. They had talked about her fashion design opportunity for Victoria Secret and how Peyton had signed her designs over. They had been getting somewhere but Brooke just couldn't let it go. She thought that she needed to otherwise she would hold a grudge against her forever. Just then she heard a noise and then someone appeared next to her. 

"Hey Nate." She said.

"Sulking?" He asked.

"A bit." She replied. "That obvious?"

"Pretty much, yeah. Have you talked to her?" He asked.

It was like he could read her mind. He knew that she was thinking about Peyton. Her face became apparent and she felt like she was see through.

"Yeah, I just can't help thinking that maybe I should just let it all go you know?" She asked.

"I think it's time." He replied. Brooke nodded.

"And time for this." He said getting up and running over by the bushes.

"Wait a second, Nathan time for what?" She asked nervously.

Just then, she knew exactly what time it was for. Sprinklers were rushing all around her and she was getting more soaked by the second. She screamed and Nathan couldn't stop laughing.

"Oh! You are so getting it!" She yelled and began to chase after him.

"You can't catch me Davis!" He yelled back and ran faster but then slipped because of how wet and slippery it was.

Brooke laughed and jumped on his back. "I got you!"

"Not yet!" He yelled and got up with her on his back. She yelled for him to put her down but he yelled no. They then heard screaming coming from inside of the house and decided to go in with Brooke still on his back.

* * *

Lucas and Peyton were in a heavy make-out scene in the bedroom upstairs. There were shirts scattered on the floor along with other things. They heard screaming and they both shot up. Peyton heard the word 'Oh man Nathan really did score!' and immediately yelled: 

"No!"

She rushed off the bed and hurried around for her shirt. Once she found it and put it on she raced down the stairs with Lucas behind her. She had to make sure that it wasn't her and Nathan that were on that tape downstairs.

* * *

Nathan and Brooke came in sopping wet with Brooke on his back. They were still laughing until they saw what flooded the screen. Nathan put Brooke down and they both fought through the crowd. 

Brooke's heart was racing a mile a minute. She couldn't believe this was happening. Now! Of all the times it just had to be now. She wanted to break down into tears right then and there and she would have but when she turned around she saw the hurt on Lucas' face and the anger on Peyton's. She immediately turned back around and saw Haley's shocked face along with Nathan's. He looked at her apologetically. She couldn't even look at Chase. She just stood there, stunned.

Looking over at Lucas once more she saw his face frown and almost tears in his eyes. It was hurting him to the extreme to see his first love on the screen with his brother…in front of everyone. He knew how she was probably feeling but he couldn't help feeling hurt also. He wasn't going to get mad at her for it but he wanted to know why he still cared. He was with Peyton so what was the big deal?

But with Peyton it was a whole different story. She was fuming. When she looked over at Brooke she went up to her and didn't say a word. She just flat out punched her as Brooke stumbled back a few steps.

* * *

Press that little button and review please! 


	7. Nobody 'Til You

Okay so here's a long one! It has a lot of switching back and forth and some flashbacks so it might get a little confusing. But here's Chapter 7! I hope you like it!

Chapter 7

As Brooke stumbled backwards, shocked, she looked Peyton straight in the eye. But Peyton didn't say anything; instead she just grabbed Lucas and ran out of the house not even looking back once. Brooke then looked at Haley who just ran out of the room while Chase left also. The whole room was silent as Brooke just kept her head down while walking out of the house.

When she got home she saw Rachel on the bed eating some ice cream and reading a magazine. Brooke flopped down on the bed and closed her eyes. She just wanted to forget that she was herself for once.

"What happened? You look like you just came home from a crappy sleepover where someone says your secret and the whole night is ruined." Rachel said not looking up from her magazine. Rachel looked up when she heard no response.

Brooke sat up and looked at her.

"Oh." She said. "What was the secret?"

Brooke sighed. Did she really want to go through this all tonight?

"Something was…shown that was during my drunken days."

"Was it bad?" She asked.

"Oh yeah." Brooke answered in all honesty.

"How bad?" Rachel asked again.

"How's sleeping with Nathan just after he and Peyton broke up and then made a tape about it bad?" She asked.

Rachel raised her eyebrows. "I'd say that's pretty bad."

"Tell me about it. And all I kept seeing was Lucas' hurt face and then Peyton came up and punched me."

"Peyton punched you?" Rachel asked.

"Yeah, hence the eye." Brooke said as she pointed her now swollen eye a little annoyed.

"Wow sounds like the party was just getting started after I left." Rachel said and smiled.

Brooke rolled her eyes. "I should have just gone home with you."

"You should have, but you didn't. Now you have to figure this out on your own. But, if you need me, I'm always here." Rachel said.

Brooke nodded, grateful she wasn't being yelled at for it. She couldn't deal with that tonight. So instead, she got cleaned up and crawled into her bed trying to forget the bruise that she would have in the morning and haunting memories of what had happened last night.

---

When Brooke woke up, her eye immediately started hurting. She groaned, and turned to her side to see Lucas standing in her doorway. She saw a note on her little table next to her bed. It read:

_Hey naughty girl,_

_Just ran out to get a few things. I'll be home later. There are peas in the refrigerator. Have a nice time icing!_

_-Your not so whore of a friend compared to you,_

_Rachel_

Brooke half smiled and then realized that she still had Lucas in her doorway.

"Hey, what are you doing here? Come to yell at me or tell me that you're disappointed?" She asked. She wondered if that was the real reason he was here. She hoped not.

"No, it's none of my business what happened that night." He said even though it was eating away at him every single time he thought about it, which was a lot.

"Well thank you." She said and began getting up. "Rachel said something about peas…"

"Here." Lucas said and revealed a frozen bag of peas in his hand. She smiled and he sat down on the bed next to her holding it to her eye. At first she winced, but was grateful for having him there.

"Thank you Lucas."

"Anything for you." He said and then realized if that was too awkward. He decided that it wasn't and that it was just friends talking. Even though he somehow knew that wasn't what it was. Brooke decided that she should just let it go too, even though when he said it she felt like she had butterflies in her stomach.

Deciding the change the subject, Brooke started talking. "So how's Peyton? Still upset?"

"Yeah, she's still upset." He replied.

Brooke nodded. "I do feel bad Lucas." She said after a pause.

"I know you do Brooke. It's just going to take her a little while to realize that."

"I just wish she would know it now. I feel like I'm truly a horrible person and I hate that feeling." She said honestly. She didn't know why she was pouring all of this out now, especially to Lucas but she did. Maybe they were becoming real friends this time with no strings attached…or maybe _he_ doesn't have strings attached. _'No'_ she thought. _'I just have leftover feelings for him, that's all.'_

And she did believe that because she would always love him. That didn't mean she was going to run back to him every time she felt something for him but it meant that she would always have feelings for him. But she wanted to be with him...now. She pushed those thoughts aside and listened to Lucas.

"I know you do, and that's what's hard. You'll have to wait. Trust me, it's painful." He said looking down.

Brooke knew what he was talking about. It took her a while to come around to him and that made her understand a little bit more about Peyton. It took Brooke a really long time to forgive Lucas and all he could do was just stand there and wait for her to come around.

Brooke nodded. "I understand."

---

After her conversation with Lucas, she understood what he was saying but she couldn't help but still have some leftover hurt from when he and Peyton cheated on her. She didn't think that sleeping with Nathan was as bad because she was drunk and technically, he and Peyton weren't together. So she decided to go to Peyton's house and explain that to her. She just wanted this hurt to go away.

She knocked on the door and Peyton answered it, but when she saw who it was she slammed the door in her face and locked it. Brooke tried calling her name but she just heard music blasting.

She remembered when she and Peyton got in a fight when they were younger, around seven, and Peyton did the same thing she was doing now, ignoring her and blasting her music. So Brooke went to her house and the only thing they had she thought would get her attention was eggs. It worked last time so Brooke figured it would work this time too. And, it would give Peyton a lot to say. '_Works both ways.' _She thought. So, Brooke went back to her and Rachel's house and got some eggs. She returned to Peyton's house and threw one at her window. She saw Peyton look at the window and then run to the door. When she opened it she came out yelling.

"So you're egging my house now?" She yelled.

"Pretty much, yeah." Brooke said simply.

"A little seven year old-ish don't you think?" Brooke just shrugged. "I can't believe you!"

"You're the one that wouldn't answer the door! This was the only way I could get your attention." Brooke explained.

"Did you ever think that maybe I didn't want to see you? And maybe that's why I wasn't answering my door?" Peyton asked.

"Yeah, but I really need to talk to you so will you please give me a minute?"

"Why should I?" Peyton asked angrily.

"Because I need to tell you some things." Brooke replied.

Peyton said nothing and Brooke took that as a signal to start talking.

"Peyton, I know that your extremely pissed at me right now but now you know how I felt when I found out about you and Lucas. Except there's some differences Peyton. I was drunk when I was with Nathan, it meant nothing because you know how I was with sex Peyton, I didn't care about the guy I was with, I just wanted it for my own pleasure. That's all it was and I wanted you to know that if you'll believe it. And technically Peyton you two weren't together. I know that it was only like a half hour before but still. It makes a difference. Lucas and I were together when you and him cheated and that hurt more then you'll ever know." Brooke said she was nearly in tears but the end.

"Trust me Brooke, I know because you told me everyday. And then you went ahead and made fun of my mother who died! How could you do that?"

Brooke was now fully crying. "I was angry." Was all she said.

"So you make fun of my mother who's dead? That's great." Peyton grew quiet. "That hurt me more then you'll ever know Brooke."

"I know now. But I didn't know before because you never told me and we weren't talking."

"Because you cut me out!" Peyton cried. "I needed my best friend and you just cut me out like I was nothing!"

"At the time you were nothing to me Peyton. Because you know what? I needed my _best _friend when Lucas broke up with me. But guess what she was doing? She was sneaking around behind my back with him!" Brooke yelled.

"At least we didn't sleep together!" Peyton exclaimed.

"No, but you guys were kissing which means so much more. And in your own words, I kiss always means something." Brooke said quietly.

Now both of the girls were sobbing non-stop. They finally said what they had been wanting to say all year. Both of them had their share of mistakes and they knew that. But now it was getting too much for them to handle.

"Brooke, you made fun of my dead mother and put me through hell these past couple months but now, now you're dead to me." Peyton said quietly and began walking away until she heard some harsh words from Brooke:

"Fine, because after you and Lucas cheated," Brooke began. "Nothing was ever the same."

Peyton winced slightly but continued walking back into her house. When Brooke heard the door slam she collapsed to the floor. She couldn't take it, her whole body was shaking. When she heard the music blasting from Peyton's room again, she let out one last shaky sigh and picked herself up. She looked at Peyton's house once more and then walked away, not looking back once.

---

Brooke spent the rest of the day in her bed crying. She didn't know that the visit to Peyton's would leave her in tears for the rest of the day. She didn't want that. She just wanted to talk to Haley after and just spill everything to her. _Haley_. She forgot that Haley was probably mad at her too. She decided that she would call her to try and explain.

Haley answered on the third ring. "Hello?"

"Hey Hales, look I…" Brooke began but Haley cut her off.

"Brooke, I don't want to hear you're sorry's. In fact, I don't want to hear you at all." Haley said angrily and hung up the phone.

"But Haley I-" Brooke tried but she just heard the dial tone.

Brooke hung up and just cried even more. She lost her ex- best friend and her best friend all in one day. And she was a crying mess. What had just happened?

---

Rachel walked in and saw tissues scattered around everywhere except the in the garbage.

"Hey whore if you thought I was going to clean up after you, you were so wrong." She said until she saw the crying mess that was Brooke on her bed.

"What happened?" She asked a little worriedly. She had never seen her in this bad of shape.

"Lost…friend…twice…yelling…crying." Brooke chocked out in between sobs.

Rachel didn't understand but just went over and hugged her. Whatever it was, she would just talk to her later about it because right now, all she wanted was a friend.

---

After Rachel got the full story on what had happened between them and Brooke still hadn't come out of her bedroom even after spending more hours of crying, Rachel decided to call someone that Brooke knew would yell at her later for but she thought it was necessary.

Just then Lucas came walking through Rachel's front door. "Hey Lucas."

"Hey, what's going on?" He asked.

"Brooke hasn't come out of her room in two days she just keeps crying." Rachel said.

"What happened?" He asked.

"What? You didn't get Peyton's side of the story?"

"Oh trust me, I did."

_Flashback_

_Lucas walked through Peyton's door and saw her carrying out two dresses. One red and one white. _

"_Ooh I like the red one." Lucas said. _

"_You would, it's Brooke's." Peyton said annoyed._

_Lucas sighed. He tried not to think anything of it but for some reason he couldn't get the words out of his head. And he really did like that dress…on Brooke._

_Peyton moved to her bed and started drawing a picture of her and Brooke fighting. Lucas sat down on the bed and put his arm around her._

"_What happened?" He asked._

"_We had a fight, there were tears, yelling, and hurt words being tossed around. We are officially over." Peyton said._

_Lucas didn't believe it. He didn't think they would be over. If they would be over it would have been a long time ago because of what they did. But Brooke forgave them and they continued being friends._

"_I don't believe that."_

_Peyton gave him a look. "And why not?"_

"_Because she forgave us after what we did. Maybe you should just forgive her. She was drunk and we all make drunken mistakes. I did with Nikki remember?"_

"_So you're saying I should stop being a baby about it and just go and make nice with her?"_

"_I'm just saying that maybe you should let this one go. She was hurting too, she's been hurting for a long time." Lucas said softly. Even though he really did wish she would just forgive her._

"_But she slept with Nathan." Peyton whined._

"_Yeah and we kissed a lot while Brooke and I were together the first time. I know you think it's wrong because she has been giving you all this crap about us being together but that hurt never goes away. We did the same thing to her Peyton. And I even talked to her earlier and she said she felt horrible about everything that happened."_

"_Oh so you went to go and see her? You know what Lucas if you came here to defend Brooke and then make secret visits to her then just leave because I don't want you here right now."_

"_Peyton all I'm saying is that you shouldn't let it ruin your prom or your day when we did the same thing."_

_After a pause Peyton said: "I don't think I'm going to prom. I just can't face her."_

_Now Lucas was slowly getting annoyed. He knew that both girls went through a lot together, because of him but he just wanted them to get past it all. He wanted the hurt to stop and he wanted his girlfriend to go to prom with him while his ex-girlfriend was right next to him being his friend. He needed to get that. _

"_Peyton, I'm coming to your house at 7:00 so if you're not ready then I guess I'm going alone." He said making sure she knew he was serious. He wanted to go prom and he wanted the night to be perfect._

"_Fine, but right now I want to be alone so don't let the door hit you on the way out. Or actually, I really don't care whether the door hits you or not I just want you to go away."_

_Lucas was about to protest but Peyton said 'door' before he could say anything. He just turned and walked away. _

_End of Flashback_

"So since then we haven't been talking. And then today I got you're text and came straight here." Lucas explained.

Rachel nodded. "So you go for the red huh?" She asked.

Lucas looked at her shyly.

"So you think she'll show?" She asked changing the subject after seeing that Lucas was getting uncomfortable. And as much as she likes seeing boys squirm, she just couldn't afford him to go storming out when she had a hysterical friend just upstairs.

He shrugged, not really knowing himself. She gave him a knowing smile and he looked nervous until Rachel spoke up.

"Don't worry, I won't tell…about the prom _or _how you prefer red…on Brooke." She smirked.

"But I really called you over here because…well do you think that you could get her out of there? I tried everything but nothing worked. I was thinking maybe you would know."

Lucas scratched his head. "I'll try."

---

Lucas walked quietly up the stairs to Brooke and Rachel's bedroom. The door was closed so he knocked.

"Go away Rachel I already told you I'm not getting out of this bed!" A muffled voice came from behind the door.

Lucas cleared his throat. "It's not Rachel."

Brooke got up from the bed and went over to the door. She rolled her eyes without looking at who was at the door. "Okay I'm sorry if Rachel made you come here but I am not getting out of this room-" Brooke would have finished if she wasn't in complete shock of who was at her door.

"Lucas, what are you doing here?" She asked shakily.

"Rachel called me but she didn't make me come here." He said trying to make sure she knew he didn't mind being here with her.

"Listen Lucas I'm really not in the mood…"

"Tell me what happened." He said.

Brooke sighed and sat back down on the bed. She motioned for Lucas to come sit next to her.

Lucas saw all the tissues on the floor and realized that Brooke was a mess right now. He could only imagine what was said.

"I went to her house after our talk and I decided to tell her how I really felt and try to get somewhere with her." She said. Lucas nodded in understanding.

"And then I went there and she slammed the door in my face so I came back and got some eggs, long story. I came back and threw them at her window so she would get my attention and she did, but she came out yelling. So then I told her that I needed to tell her some things and she didn't say anything so I figured that was the 'okay'. I said everything I needed to say and then we just went on this trip down memories from hell lane and we both ended up crying hysterically. But then, then she said that I was dead to her. So I said she was never alive to me. I know it was wrong Lucas but I came home and was crying until I realized that I hadn't talked to Haley yet and so I called her but she just hung up on me because she said she didn't want to hear my voice at all. After that I just lost it." Brooke explained, a few more tears falling each time she started a new sentence.

Lucas looked down at the girl who he used to know as so strong and confidant but was now, just torn and broken. She had been pushed to the limit and it was now all coming back to her at once. Her past was haunting her and she had no one to turn to. He wanted to just hug her and make it all better but he knew it was much more complicated then that. He then thought _'screw it'_ and pulled her in a tight hug. She sobbed on his shoulder as he stroked her hair. He remembered some comforting words that he once heard and then whispered them in her ear.

"It's okay, I'm here for you."

Brooke immediately remembered the words. They were the same words that she told him when Nathan was in his car crash. She smiled in his shoulder.

"Thank you." She managed to whisper. She felt Lucas nod and for once out of the two days that she had been sobbing in this room, she felt like someone was there for her.

---

Brooke saw a missed call from Chase. He said he wanted to meet her in front of the school. She hoped that he would make her feel better by saying it didn't matter about her past, all he wanted was her in his future. But by the way his face looked, it seemed like those words would never come out of his mouth.

"Hey Chase." She greeted.

"Hey." He said quietly. "I need to talk to you."

"Okay, shoot." She said.

"I don't think I can do this anymore Brooke. I mean I told you about my past and the cheating and then I find out that you did the same thing."

"Chase, it wasn't like that…" She tried to reason with him.

"Then how was it?" He asked.

"I was drunk, and it didn't mean anything. My ex-best friend did the same thing to me after what you saw."

"So that was the last time you cheated?" He asked.

Brooke looked guilty down at her feet.

"It wasn't?" He asked.

"Not exactly but it's a long story." Chase sighed.

"I was drunk and I was going through this non exclusive faze with the guy that cheated on me but then I ended up sleeping with this musician. It didn't mean anything and then I got back together with him." Brooke said quickly trying to reason with him.

"Did he know about it?" He asked.

"Yes he…kind of walked in after we did. But we got back together and I haven't done it since then. I don't cheat Chase; I want you to know that. I was trying to start new but my past just keeps coming back to haunt me and I don't know how to stop it."

"I just…I need some time." He said.

"Are we breaking up?" She asked preparing for the worst.

"Not exactly, but were not together either." Chase said. "We just…take some time apart from each other."

Brooke felt like a knife went through her heart. She was getting hurt…again. She felt like her heart had been ripped out. She really liked Chase and she knew that she was letting her heart open up to him again. But just like her past, guys kept disappointing her.

She barely nodded and walked away. But before she could get far she heard Chase say:

"Brooke, I still like you, don't ever think that I stopped."

She felt herself smile a little and then got into her car after nodding in his direction. She drove off with some tears falling down from her face.

---

Brooke knew prom was coming up and since she knew her and Chase weren't going together she thought of the one person who was hurting along with her. Mouth. She saw him at the river court with his buddies Fergie, Junk, and Skillz. She walked over to him and smiled.

"Look Mouth, I know what happened between you and Shelly, and Chase just said we needed a break so I was thinking that we could go to prom together. But you're so not a second choice. I was just thinking that since we were both hurting that we would have the most fun together…" Brooke said rambling.

"Brooke." Mouth said cutting her off. "Of course I'll go to prom with you."

Brooke squealed and hugged Mouth. When she pulled back she exclaimed:

"Those Clean Teens really should have a sign on their shirts saying 'We Break Hearts'."

Mouth laughed. "I agree with you there."

"So it's a date?" She asked.

"It's a date." He echoed.

Brooke smiled and then said left. Mouth had a smile on his face for the rest of the day.

When she arrived at home, she saw a package on her front step. She opened it and saw a red dress sitting in the box. Maybe things really were looking up for her.

---

Okay so now this is where things don't exactly follow the show. The next chapter will be prom, but it will be a lot different! Please review!


	8. Can't Let Go

**A/N: Hey guys! I am so sorry that it took me about 10 years just to get this chapter out. My computer crashed so I didn't have anything on it. But everything's okay and the story ****is**** continuing! This chapter is about prom, but it goes a lot differently then it did on the show. Enjoy! And thank you for understanding!**

**Chapter 8**

Brooke walked into her house and set the dress down on her bed. She looked long and hard at it, and realized that it was a beautiful dress. She thought that maybe Peyton wanted to reconcile and they could maybe exchange apologies. She walked over and down in front of her mirror to put on some makeup. She was going to look good for prom no matter what.

She thought about what Chase was doing right now. Was he going with someone else? Or was he not going to prom? She wanted to go to prom with Chase just because she cared about him and it would be a new experience. She wanted prom to special and fun, and since Chase was such a sweet guy, she knew it would be memorable with him. But she knew that it wasn't an option, so she pushed those fantasy thoughts behind her head and tried to focus on going with Mouth.

Her and Mouth were really good friends for a while, but when her and Lucas broke up, they distanced themselves a little bit. Brooke admitted that it was hard to talk to Mouth when his best friend was her ex-boyfriend and Mouth probably would have admitted that it was hard talking to his best friends ex-girlfriend. Both situations were very awkward and she wanted to avoid them at all costs.

She remembered the first night she had ever spent time with Mouth. It was when she won him for the Boy Toy Auction. She was so determined to get someone that night that she grabbed Mouth the second he stepped on the stage. It turned out to be a good night though and she was grateful that the night they spent together and created a great friendship. But she would never think of Mouth in more then a friendship way even though she knew that Mouth used to like her. She didn't even know until Haley told her.

Haley was the big name that was on her mind right now. She hated having Haley mad at her especially when she loved talking to Haley so much. She had never valued a friendship as much as hers and Haley's. She felt like she could talk to Haley about everything and anything and when they were in fights like this, she didn't know who she could turn to. Bottom line, she missed her. And worst of all she would have to see her at the prom tonight. She knew for a fact she was going because once Nathan surprised her with a dress she screamed and called Brooke. And a few minutes later, Brooke was there to check out the stunning dress.

She sighed contently and started to open up all of her makeup and get ready for prom, starting with a shower that would hopefully take her mind off of all the drama that was happening lately.

She just hoped that prom would be a good night without any worries and just plain old fun. But somehow she knew that it wasn't going to be at all.

* * *

Peyton got her makeup done after a hot shower and slipped into her angelic white flowing dress. She decided to go to prom to make the best of it because it was her senior year and she was finally with Lucas so she figured that she couldn't let Brooke have the satisfaction of seeing her not go. She didn't think Brooke was truly an evil person because they were friends for 12 years but she knew Brooke liked winning fights and Peyton was determined that she wasn't going to win this one. 

She was walking elegantly down the stairs when she heard the doorbell ring. She was ecstatic knowing that Lucas was on the other side of her door waiting for her in his classy Armani suit. Before opening the door she took one last look at herself. Then taking a deep breath and opening the door. She looked down shyly and smiled, but when she looked up she realized it wasn't Lucas, it wasn't him at all.

"Jake?" She asked in such shock that she felt her legs wobble and she suddenly felt faint. It couldn't be him.

"Hi Peyton." He said and Peyton could tell he was extremely nervous.

"What are you doing here?" She asked bitterly. She couldn't help the anger that was building inside of her. How could he just show up all of a sudden? Didn't he know that coming here would make her even more confused? And for once she felt like she knew who she was in love with and she was certain it was Lucas, but having Jake come back could ruin her whole entire world because she knew that still deep in her heart, Jake was there. She was heartbroken when he told her to go back to Tree Hill and be with Lucas. She couldn't handle it for the longest time. And then with the whole Brooke and Derek scenario she really needed someone. And that someone that was there for her was Lucas.

"You look amazing." He said ignoring her question. He sensed the anger in her voice and knew that she would be asking him a lot of questions.

"It's the prom that's why." She replied. "I'm going with Lucas."

Jake looked down at the floor. He realized that she was now going out with him. He had been right to let her go, for she didn't love him, and maybe she never loved him at all. But right now, this very instant, it hurt.

"Oh." Was all he could say.

Peyton felt like she couldn't breathe. She had been so harsh to him, so mean, but for what? He was back and she couldn't do anything about it. And flaunting her and Lucas' relationship in his face didn't sound like her at all. What did it matter that she was going with Lucas to the prom? If this were months earlier she would have told Jake in a calmer, more light way. But now, now she felt like she had to rub it in his face to see what he has been missing.

"Look, Jake, why are you here?" She asked in a softer tone.

"I had to see you." He said. She wondered if that was the absolute truth, considering that he picked a very unusual time to see her.

"That's it?" She asked. "There's no other reason?"

Jake looked at the floor. "The truth is, I just missed you. I'm not running away anymore, I'm definitely done with that. And Jenny is in Savannah with my family while I'm out here. I just…I just needed a vacation away and maybe to see you again. We haven't talked to each other since you proposed…"

"I know." Peyton said, cutting him off. She didn't want Lucas to know about that. Not yet anyways. She then looked at the floor. She felt guilty for not keeping in touch but she thought it was best to just cut the ties completely. She looked at the clock and realized that Lucas would be here any second.

"Uh, Jake I know that you wanted to catch up and all that stuff but Lucas is coming and I have to get to prom but maybe you could come by tomorrow or something and we could talk." She said trying to sound like he wasn't unwanted. She didn't know what she wanted right now.

"Okay, I'll see you later then." He said. Peyton nodded awkwardly and he left her house. She breathed a sigh of relief that Lucas didn't see him. She was worried about what he would say and if he would be mad or not.

Not more then two minutes after Jake left, Lucas pulled up in her driveway.

"Hey." He greeted and kissed her softly on the lips.

"Hey!" Peyton jumped, still thinking about her conversation with Jake.

Lucas looked at her with a crooked eyebrow. "You okay?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm good." Peyton replied shakily. She didn't know why she was getting all jumpy just because Jake came back. Probably just because she didn't want Lucas to find out, she hoped.

"Great, then let's go." Lucas said and they walked out the door together and onto prom.

* * *

Lucas and Peyton arrived at the prom and sat down. The whole car ride there Peyton had been jumpy, thinking about how Jake had come back and how he was in town this very instant. She could never tell Lucas though; she didn't know how he would react. 

"You okay?" He asked her.

She jumped slightly. "Oh yeah, I'm fine. Let's dance."

He nodded and led them on the dance floor. They danced right next to Brooke and Mouth. Brooke saw both of them and she couldn't say that she didn't feel any hurt. Truth was, it was killing her inside to see both of them dancing and smiling together. She remembered when she used to dream of them going to prom together, if only they had stayed together longer. She didn't understand why she couldn't just branch out with out always having him in the back of her mind. She then thought about Chase and what he was doing right now. She knew she wanted to be at prom with him but she wasn't sure if it was because she saw Lucas and Peyton dancing together or if it was because she truly liked him.

She looked up at Mouth and saw him smiling. She was having fun with him tonight and that's what tonight was about. Fun. She was going to have as much fun as she could without having Lucas, Peyton, or Chase in her way.

"You know Mouth, you're actually a really good dancer." She said with a smile.

"That's what they tell me." He said playfully.

"Thanks for coming to prom with me." Brooke said quietly.

"I wouldn't want to spend it with anyone else." He replied and then dipped her.

She giggled and when she came up Lucas was directly in her face. She got those darn butterflies again. The butterflies that she swore would stop. She smiled at Lucas, and then turned back to Mouth.

"Do you need some air?" Mouth asked.

"No, no I'm fine, thanks."

They continued to dance and just try and forget everything around them. That lasted about ten seconds until Shelly walked through the door.

"What's she doing here?" Brooke asked Mouth.

Mouth just shook his head in confusion. "I really don't know."

She came rushing through the door, like she was looking for some one. Brooke knew who she was looking for, her prom date. Shelly spotted Mouth and then saw him with Brooke. She froze for a second but then took a deep breath, and walked over to them.

"Mouth, I need to talk to you." She said nervously.

"I thought you just couldn't do this anymore? We had a good bye remember?" Mouth said.

Brooke looked between them and figured she should get out of there.

"You know Mouth, I think I see the punch bowl waiting for me so I think I'll…"

"No." Mouth said cutting her off. "We came here to have fun and dance, and that's exactly what I plan on doing."

He looked at Shelly once more and then grabbed Brooke's hand and led her farther into the dance floor. So now they were not next to Lucas and Peyton but Brooke could still feel the butterflies that would not leave her stomach.

"Mouth, are you sure you made the right choice?" Brooke asked after they had been dancing for a couple of minutes.

Mouth seemed so out of his element. He looked around the room like a lost puppy. She was confused as to why he would blow her off and then long for her when she was gone. Wasn't the whole point of having her ex come back to the prom and tell you they want to talk to you a good thing? Considering Brooke was sure that Shelly was going to get back together with him.

Finally, he nodded. "Yeah."

Brooke broke the grasp that they had on each other.

"Well I don't!" She exclaimed.

"Brooke…" He began.

"No Mouth, you need to go find her and explain to her that you were just drunk or something!" She yelled cutting him off.

"But Brooke…"

"No buts! Now go!" She said and pushed him towards the door.

"Thanks Brooke!" She heard Mouth call out while he was running.

Brooke breathed a sigh of happiness as she saw Mouth bolt towards the door. She thought she would just get some punch to freshen up a bit.

* * *

All while Lucas and Peyton were dancing, Peyton was a bit jumpy. She could not for the life of her get over why Jake was here. She knew he wanted to talk to her to catch up but that couldn't possibly be all that he wanted. Maybe that's not all _she_ wanted. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even hear Lucas when he was talking to her.

"…And so then I just walked away." He said, finishing some big long story that she had no clue what was about. Just then Lucas saw Mouth run out the door and Brooke nowhere to be seen.

"Uh huh." She replied and kept looking at the door. She hoped that Lucas didn't know she wasn't paying attention.

"Are you okay?" Lucas said, obviously noticing that something was up with her.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine just a little…thirsty." She said.

"Do you want me to get you some punch?" He asked.

Peyton nodded. "That would be great, thanks."

"I'll be right back."

Lucas walked over to the punch bowl and saw Brooke standing there. He was relieved to know she didn't leave.

"Hey." He greeted cheerfully.

"Hey Lucas." She replied.

"So, I saw Mouth run out, what happened?"

"Oh don't worry we didn't get into a fight or anything. Its just Shelly came back and he completely blew her off so I told him he made a mistake and made him chase after her. So now I'm left dateless, but that's okay." Brooke explained and took a sip of her punch.

"Whoa, that's strong." She said and gulped down the rest of her drink.

"What happened to Chase?" Lucas choked out. It was so hard for him to say that name.

"Oh well ever since he saw that video of Nathan and I he decided that I was a slut and that we couldn't be together. And he decided to do it right before prom. Great, huh?"

"I'm sorry Brooke. I knew there was something up with that guy." He answered truthfully.

"Yeah well, to tell you the truth, right now I don't miss him."

"No?"

"Nope, not at all."

Lucas smiled and he suddenly got butterflies in his stomach. Why? Was it because Brooke Davis just admitted that she liked spending time with him? Or was it because she was enjoying his company? He didn't know why he got them, but since she wasn't his current girlfriend he wished they would go away. He watched her as her balance started faltering. He wondered what was in the drink. Whatever it was, it was definitely strong.

He looked at the floor for a second and when he came up Brooke was on her third cup. He grew worried and immediately snatched the cup away from her.

"I think that's enough for tonight." He told her.

"Oh come on Lucas, I mean I'm dateless, Chase isn't coming because well let's face it he can't even look at my face anymore without seeing disappointment and you and I have the most messed up friendship I have ever seen." Brooke said drunkenly.

Lucas was hurt by her last sentence. He thought their friendship was going pretty well. That's how it seemed anyway.

"You really think that?" He asked her.

"Well yeah, because I mean you are dating Peyton but we still talk even though, I still get those butterflies around you. They just won't stop!" She exclaimed and started giggling.

Lucas felt himself blush, knowing they were feeling the same sparks as before. Did she just say a drunken confession?

"Okay Brooke maybe that's enough punch…" He began not really knowing what to say. He couldn't tell her that he was feeling the same way. He couldn't tell her that in his heart he knew it wasn't just tonight that was making him see this. He tried to ignore it before but now he wasn't sure if it was just leftover feelings or feelings that were just hiding. He then tried grabbing the punch and he successfully got it. His face had a triumphant expression on it but Brooke's was staring straight ahead.

"Brooke?" Lucas asked worriedly.

"Speaking of Peyton, isn't that her making out with someone that's not you on the dance floor?" She asked a little out of it and pointed to the middle of the dance floor.

Lucas followed her finger and then saw something that made his mouth drop. Brooke was right. There was Peyton making out with someone…but not just any someone, it was Jake.

* * *

Please review and thanks for sticking with me! 


	9. Ghost Of You

**A/N: Okay so I am unbelievable sorry and I could tell you why I was busy but you probably don't want to hear it. So, enjoy the update and since you guys have been so loyal, an update could come again tonight!**

Chapter 9

Peyton was waiting in the middle of the dance floor for her boyfriend that was getting her punch when she kept envisioning Jake walking through the door. She wasn't sure if she wanted him to come through the door or if she was just scared that he was going to. She would glance at the floor and then the door every once in a while. And then every once in a while turned into every minute and then every second. She didn't know what was going on with her. Could she really still love Jake?

She stared at the rest of the people having fun and dancing with their boyfriend or girlfriend. She wished she could just have a normal prom instead of always having all these problems and issues. It just seemed like they would never go away. She then looked for Lucas, and saw him talking to Brooke while getting some punch for her and him. She was surprisingly not as jealous as she thought she would be. She had been feeling this way for a while though, so it was nothing new. In the beginning she used to be jealous whenever Lucas talked about Brooke or even when she learned he went and saw her first. But now, now she felt nothing. She just thought that this would pass, fade, go away, or at least she hoped it would.

I mean she finally had Lucas and now it wasn't like she wanted. Of course she would like it when they kissed or when they held hands and she tried to convince herself that everything was okay and that this was how it was supposed to be. But something in the bottom of her stomach told her otherwise.

So when she saw him and Brooke talking and laughing, she saw the famous smile that he would always give her and just think about their relationship. She wanted to know what he was thinking and for once, she didn't know. She could always read him but not when it came to Brooke. That was a subject for only the two of them.

She sighed and thought to herself that prom should be better then this. It should be magical, and like a fantasy night. And on that fantasy night, it shouldn't be filled with thoughts about the doubts in the relationship she was in. So she took a deep breath and turned towards the door. Maybe a little fresh air would help.

Just as she was walking towards the door, it busted open. And guess who was there? Yes, it was Jake. Jake Jagelski was standing in the doorway looking her way. He had an intense look in his eye, one that she was familiar with. She knew what he was going to do. He was going to kiss her. He was going to kiss her and she would kiss him back. She knew she would.

She stayed put and decided what she would say. Of course, she only had about two seconds because he was trudging her way very quickly.

Finally, his eyes met hers and before she knew it they were standing one inch away from each other. He tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears.

Peyton looked down and then up at him.

"Jake…" She began.

But he didn't hear her, or maybe he just didn't care. Because what he did next was making her heart beat a mile a minute, her palms became sweaty, and she couldn't come up with one word in her head.

He leaned down and kissed her. And to both hers and his surprise, she kissed him back. She cupped her hands around his face and he grabbed her waist. He held her close to him and she held on tight. This is what she needed. This was the sparkle, this was the fantasy. When they broke apart their foreheads rested against each other's and she sighed with content ness.

"Hi…" He whispered.

She laughed. "Hello."

He began laughing too but their laughing was immediately stopped when she saw Lucas standing before them. She broke out of his arms as fast as she could and looked at Lucas.

"Lucas…" She began.

For the first time in a year Jake looked in Lucas' eyes. He didn't think it would be this hard.

"Lucas…" Peyton began again. "Let's go talk outside."

Lucas had no words to say though, he didn't want to talk to Peyton and he didn't want to talk to Jake. The only person he really wanted to talk to was Brooke. He just shook his head at them and walked over to the table that he had seated Brooke at.

"Hey Brooke." He whispered softly in her ear.

She groaned slightly and then a surge of energy came through her and she stood up.

"Whoa." She said and held her head. Maybe she got up a little bit too fast.

She leaned back and almost fell but Lucas quickly wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him.

"Come on, let's go." He said to her but she protested.

"No, I want to dance." She said. "I only danced with Mouth tonight."

In any other circumstance, he would have danced with her all night, but not tonight. Tonight he just wanted to get out of here.

"Okay, we will." He promised. "Let's go."

He led her through the crowd of young couples and scattered people and out the front doors.

He thought of the one place where he felt like everything was normal and perfect; the once place that was always okay. The Rivercourt.

When they got there, Brooke immediately sat on the picnic table, trying to fight the dizziness that was taking over her body.

"So what happened?" She asked after a couple of moments of silence.

"I thought you were too drunk to comprehend anything?" He asked.

"Well maybe that's what I wanted you to think."

He laughed. "Well then you fooled me."

"Good. That's the desired effect I wanted. So now tell me what happened. I caught the first part, considering I was the one that pointed it out to you." She said and got up off the table and walked over to him.

"Well I saw them kissing and I just walked over there."

"Was there any talking involved?"

"A little. She said my name a couple of times but I just shook my head and walked away. I mean I couldn't believe that they would do that. It's Peyton and Jake for goodness sake!" He exclaimed.

"I know how it feels."

Lucas looked down at his feet. "I'm really sorry Brooke."

"For what?" She asked softly, not being able to look at him.

"Everything."

She nodded. "It's okay Luke. It's been okay for a while now."

"Has it really though, Brooke? I mean can you honestly say that you're over Peyton and I dating? And what about the school shooting kiss? And you're definitely not over me shutting you out because that's why you broke up with me. So stop pretending that you're okay Brooke." Lucas said with no anger but frustration in his voice.

Brooke was done with all of this. Now Lucas was telling her not to be okay? When did this happen? And so what if she wasn't completely okay with everything? That didn't mean she had to tell everyone that. She wanted to move on. Or at least she thought she wanted to move on. She said 'screw it' and then let him know everything.

"You know what Lucas? Fine. I'm not okay with everything. I'm not okay with you and Peyton dating, I'm not okay with the kiss that you never told me about and you're so right I'm not over how you shut me out. But at least I'm _dealing_ with it Lucas! Unlike you who just ignores it or hopes it goes away! It doesn't work like that!" Brooke yelled.

"Well I'm trying to deal with it!" Lucas protested.

"Oh yeah, and how are you doing that? You just ran out of there without talking to her or hearing an explanation!"

"Well what do you care? You and Peyton aren't even talking!"

"That doesn't matter and you know it Lucas."

"No, I think it does Brooke. I mean why should you care about our relationship?"

"Because I care about her and I care about you!" Brooke yelled.

Brooke grew quiet. What was she thinking telling Lucas all these things about her now? This was wasn't right in her mind. It felt like clutter, but in her heart it felt like it was finally opening up again after being closed for so long.

"So when you said that you still got butterflies, it was true?" He asked quietly.

When Brooke didn't say anything, Lucas spoke up again.

"Brooke?"

"Yes." She answered quietly. But Lucas didn't hear her.

"What?"

"Yes!" She said now yelling. "But I didn't want to tell you because in case you didn't notice Peyton is still technically you're girlfriend and technically my best friend! Not as of now but she was and I still wouldn't do that to her even if she did it to me."

"Well I'd rather have you be honest with me then not tell me."

Brooke laughed. "Right."

"I would." He said.

"You know what? I'm done talking about this. And how did we get on this subject anyways? It was about you and Peyton and then it turned back into us. This is always what happens…"

"I care about you too, Brooke." He said cutting her off.

"What?" She asked.

"I care about you a lot Brooke. I would never want to lose you."

"So what? Are you saying that you feel the same way? Because I bet you don't. I bet you really don't because I want to kiss you right now and I've wanted to kiss you for a long time. I've told myself that I was crazy and it was just leftover feelings but it's not Lucas! And I hate it! Why do I have to love you? You're the worst person to love!" She said, now tearing up. "No offense."

Her whole world was spinning and all she felt like she could do was run.

She saw Lucas' shocked face and decided now was the best time make an exit. At least to go home and sleep on all of this.

"I have to go…" She said and began walking away.

"You run away too Brooke."

She turned around to face him. "Excuse me?"

"You run. You do. I'm not the only one. Maybe that's why we didn't work out. We both run from things instead of toughening them out."

"I really have to go Lucas, I'm tired…" Brooke began.

"And scared." He finished.

Brooke took a deep breath and turned around again, walking away.

Before she left the actual court, she heard three quiet words that made her heart stop.

"I'm scared too."

Now the tears were running down her face and becoming very, very apparent.

He walked in front of her and looked into her eyes. She looked beautiful in the moonlight and all he could think about was her. Nothing else mattered. He didn't want anything else.

"Lucas…" She began.

He cupped her face gently and whispered: "Don't…"

Before she could say or do anything else he leaned down and he kissed her. It was soft, but passionate and she had to admit, it was what she wanted for the longest time. It didn't matter that they were in the middle of the Rivercourt or that it was midnight, all that mattered was that they were back in each other's arms. But she knew it was wrong, this was all wrong. But somehow it felt _right_.

The kiss was getting more heated and he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer. He wanted her closer, so much closer. She wrapped her arms around his neck tightly, like she didn't want to let him go. They eventually pulled away, breathlessly.

Brooke snapped back to reality and her eyes grew big.

"We shouldn't have done that." She said quietly looking down at her feet. She knew if she looked in his eyes she would have said the complete opposite.

Lucas just stared at Brooke not really knowing what to say. He couldn't deny that he felt more in that kiss then he had in a while but he still technically had a girlfriend. So who does he choose? The ex-girlfriend or the actual girlfriend?

* * *

After Lucas left, Peyton and Jake were standing in the middle of the dance floor. Neither of them knew what to say or what to do. Well, Peyton knew what she _wanted_ to do but she didn't think that was appropriate right now. Although, Jake was thinking the same thing.

"Peyton…" Jake began.

"Don't be sorry." She said cutting him off. "I knew you were going to do it and I never stopped you."

"Like you could of." Jake said playfully.

Peyton slapped him on the arm. "How are we joking at a time like this?"

She let out a frustrated groan.

"I don't know. But we are." He said and she suddenly turned serious.

"Jake…" Peyton began.

"Look, Peyton, I know nothing is going to be solved, I know that. I just…don't know what came over me. I mean I saw you looking so beautiful and I just went for it." Jake said half babbling half really needing to get this out.

Peyton didn't answer. She couldn't. Jake searched her eyes for some expression.

"Where are you staying?" She finally asked.

"My old house." He replied.

"How?"

"My parents still own it."

Peyton laughed, embarrassed. "Right."

Jake flashed his signature smile that she always melted too. And it was no different now. She was literally getting weak in the knees just standing here with him. She had to leave.

"I can't-be with you." Peyton said stuttering.

"Peyton…" Jake began.

"No, I- I have to go." Peyton choked out and rushed out of the doors to prom that was filled with drama, tears, and even possibilities.

* * *

Okay well there's chapter 9! Don't forget to review and thanks for sticking with me and the story! And look out for the new update coming very very soon! 


	10. Making A Memory

**A/N: Okay so since all of you reviewers made my day with all of your comments, I am giving you the longest update I've ever written! So enjoy this chapter, there's only one or two left!**

Chapter 10

Jake wanted more then anything to just chase after Peyton and scoop her up in his arms, reassuring her that everything was going to be okay. But he knew he couldn't. She would have to come to him.

But, he couldn't lie and say that he didn't enjoy it. In all honesty he had wanted that kiss for such a long while. He knew he had to let her go and he now saw that she actually did love Lucas, maybe even more then him. That hurt him, that hurt him deep. So now what was he supposed to do? He figured nothing, and that all he had to do now was wait.

And that was the most painful thing Jake had ever felt.

Unless...she wasn't with Lucas, right?

* * *

Lucas and Brooke stared at each other intensely for they didn't even know how long. It seemed like hours, minutes, seconds, who could tell? They weren't sure if what had happened was real, or if it was right. How could one kiss that felt so right be so utterly and completely complicated? 

"I have to go." Brooke said finally.

Brooke couldn't stand the tension anymore. She couldn't stand anything anymore really. She had to talk to Haley; she had to talk to her now and fast.

Lucas didn't say anything when Brooke left. Of course, like he always does. He's very notorious for letting people walk out. He wondered why he couldn't just go after people. Why did they have to come to him? He figured that was why he was the one that grovels the next day. Which brings him to his next thought: Would Brooke still talk to him tomorrow? And would Peyton ever find out? Peyton. What was he going to do with her? He groaned in frustration because of the questions he didn't have answers to. He kicked a pebble and decided to walk back home. He had a lot to think about.

Brooke drove to Nathan and Haley's. She needed to talk to someone and she knew that Nathan and Haley would be on her side no matter what. Or at least she hoped they would.

When she arrived she realized that they weren't at prom. Where could they have been?

Brooke marched to the front door and rang the doorbell.

Nathan answered the door smiling and laughing. "Hello?"

"Hey Nathan, where's Haley?" Brooke asked quickly.

"She's inside, is there something wrong?" Nathan asked now looking at her tear stained cheeks.

"Yeah," She said softly, "Everything."

He nodded and took her inside. Haley's voice echoed throughout the house.

"Nathan! Hurry back! I'm waiting!" She yelled in an opera voice.

"Oh great," Brooke groaned. "You both don't actually go to prom but you get the after-prom benefits?"

Nathan smiled crookedly. "Sorry Brooke, but I _am_ married."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, been there and definitely not doing that anytime soon." Brooke said and marched into the room where Haley was. Before she went in she knocked on the door.

"Haley, it's me Brooke, are you fully clothed?" She asked carefully.

She heard lots of running around and a gasp, "Uh-yeah just a second!"

Haley came out in a robe.

"You really didn't have any clothes on?" Brooke asked, shocked.

"Of course I have clothes on, just not appropriate ones." Haley said truthfully and blushed.

"No wonder why Tutor Girl and Bad Boy are having a little Tutor Bad Boy soon. You guys just won't quit!"

"Okay Brooke." Haley said now blushing even more. "You came here for something and I know it wasn't to talk about mine and Nathan's…you know, so what did you really come here for?"

Brooke sighed and sat down on the bed. "It's horrible Haley. So, so horrible."

"What happened?" She asked.

"Lucas and I kissed." Brooke replied.

"What!" Haley exclaimed.

"Before you go all mother on me he and Peyton had a fight because guess who was making out on the dance floor? Peyton…and Jake!"

"What? Oh my gosh. That's big." Haley said wide-eyed.

"I know. So Lucas and I got out of there, had an argument and then we just…kissed! At the Rivercourt." She explained.

"What did he say afterwards?"

"Nothing. We both said nothing. We just stared at each other for a long time. He was thinking about Peyton, I just know it." Brooke said sadly.

"Well we don't know that. I mean maybe he was but not in the way you think. He could have been thinking that he loved the kiss but he didn't want Peyton to find out and ruin it." Haley suggested. She prayed she was right.

"Or maybe he was thinking about how much of a mistake the kiss was."

"I highly doubt that." Haley said trying to brighten Brooke's spirits up.

"I used to know how to read him so well Hales…I really did. But now I don't anymore. Even though were good friends I can't read him like I could before. He doesn't even act like the same person."

"I know. But maybe that's why you can't read him. Maybe he's two different people when he's with you and when he's with Peyton." Haley said wondering aloud.

"You might be onto something there Hales." Brooke said and then realized where she was and how she intruded on their evening.

"Okay well I think I've done enough interrupting. I'm going to go but thanks so much for listening Hales. I really needed that." Brooke said gratefully.

"Oh no you don't have to…" Haley began but Brooke cut her off.

"Don't worry. Go have fun!" Brooke yelled and Haley hugged her.

Brooke left their house and realized that she still hadn't told Haley about who really took the tests. Now she felt horrible. _'Great'_, Brooke thought, _'Another thing I have to worry about.'_

She looked through the window and saw Nathan and Haley cuddling together and laughing. They looked so happy. And she only wished the best for them.

* * *

It had been four days now ever since prom happened and he still had so many questions. All these thoughts were rushing through Lucas' mind. Did the kiss mean something? Did he just do it on an impulse?

No, he didn't, and that's what made him even more scared. What was he going to do now? Did he feel the way he feels with Peyton the way he does Brooke? Why had he always felt something missing when he would kiss Peyton?

He knew he loved Peyton, but maybe not in the way that he thought. He wouldn't get those butterflies that would rise in his stomach every time she entered the room. He wouldn't get excited to go out and just be with her. When they would hold hands he would always look around to make sure people weren't looking at them. Why had all of this been so uncomfortable?

And then there was Brooke. His pretty girl, the one that he loved the most in this world until she broke up with him. He was so hurt when she did that and then he just jumped into a new relationship. Sure, she told him it was okay but he should have known better. He should have known that his pretty girl was hurt or at least that she needed a little while to get settled on everything.

Then, the night when he finds his girlfriend kissing another guy, Jake, he goes and kisses Brooke. He doesn't blame her if she's mad. All it looks like he did was just kiss her out of spite. He didn't know how he was going to explain it to her that it wasn't like that.

And look at him now, all he can think about is his ex girlfriend. That isn't right. He was hurt that Peyton kissed Jake but he wasn't really surprised.

Just then the phone rang. It was Peyton.

He sighed, "Hello?"

"Lucas, we need to talk. Can you come over, please?" She asked, practically begging.

Lucas figured that if he went and things didn't work out he knew who he really loved. But there was always that big possibility that things wouldn't work out, because well, because he's Lucas.

"Okay, I'll be right there."

* * *

Lucas arrived at Peyton's and without even knocking, opened the door. He walked up the stairs to her room and saw her sprawled out on her bed, looking like a mess. 

She saw Lucas and straightened up, "Hi Lucas."

"Hey Peyton," Lucas replied, trying to figure out what they were going to do with their relationship. He had no clue.

"So I was thinking," She began, "that I messed up but I don't think that we should throw away our relationship over it. I mean, I don't love Jake the way I love you."

And that was true. Peyton would never love Jake the way she loved Lucas because she wasn't in love with Lucas like she was Jake. In fact, the only reason she wanted this relationship back so badly, was because she didn't want to deal with Jake, because she knew things would get complicated and she would end up being hurt. She tried that once before, and didn't like it one bit.

After hearing what Peyton had to say, Lucas considered this. Nothing was for sure with Brooke right now, considering she just walked away from him without saying anything about where they stood. He wasn't even sure if they were friends right now. All he knew was that things were about to get complicated again, and he couldn't deal with complicated. Not now, and not ever.

So they both took the easy way out.

"I agree," Lucas told her, "Let's just try it all again, okay?"

She nodded and got up off the bed to go and hug him. He accepted the hug, but from a simple lurker or friend in the room, you could tell there was no heart in it.

* * *

Before school, Brooke was wandering around the Rivercourt, where everything took place the night of prom. She didn't even know why she accepted the kiss. It was all a mistake, just one huge mistake, she would tell herself. 

Too bad it didn't give her much convincing.

She often wondered if she and Lucas should have tried to work things out instead of her pushing him into Peyton and causing herself more pain. It wasn't her fault that they were together though, because Lucas had the choice of going to Peyton or staying with her, and he chose Peyton. Again.

It wasn't like she was still bitter about the whole Peyton and Lucas relationship, even though sometimes she wanted to punch a wall or gag whenever she heard the two names in the same sentence. But she just figured that was normal.

Brooke was pulled out of her thoughts when a frantic Mouth came running towards her.

"Brooke!" He yelled and ran even faster towards her, "I have to tell you something!"

Brooke's expression changed from sad to confused in an instant. She hoped he wasn't going to kiss her.

Mouth stopped abruptly in front of her. "I have to tell you a story."

"Okay then, out with it Mouth." She told him.

"Okay so remember how you told me to go after Shelly?" He asked.

Brooke nodded, "Yeah."

"Well…" Mouth began but Brooke's huge grin stopped him.

"Don't tell me! You guys are back together?" Brooke exclaimed.

Mouth nodded. "Oh yeah!"

Brooke hugged him tight, silently thanking the Lord that Mouth's story wasn't about her.

When they pulled apart they both stood there, not saying a word. She knew what he was thinking.

"Mouth, don't." Brooke told him before he could speak.

"But Brooke, were graduating in three days."

"You know what happened at prom, and after that nothing else happened. I haven't talked to him since."

"Well it's only been four days, I mean he could be a mess and we don't even know it." He reassured.

She patted his arm, "Thanks Mouth, but I know he's not a mess."

Mouth wished Lucas would just go up and talk to her instead of hiding out.

"Well hey, maybe Chase will come around."

"You know Mouth; I actually don't want a boyfriend right now. This is when I need to be strong." She told him quietly.

He nodded, sadly. "Well you'll always have me as a friend."

She hugged him once again and whispered, "I know."

* * *

The next day at school the seniors were shuffling in, and enjoying their last days at Tree Hill High. All of them were ready to graduate, especially the famous five. 

Brooke was currently at her locker, cleaning some things out. It was hard though, because she still had most of the things that Lucas gave her when they first started going out and when he 'pimped' her locker in the beginning of the year. She could have cried right then and there.

And just like in the beginning of the year, Lucas popped up in back of her and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Throwing all of that away, or just burning it?" He asked, knowing that she was mad at him.

"Well I was actually going to divide everything up. The things that I liked the most would get thrown away but the things that reminded me of you most I would burn."

Lucas laughed, he loved her harsh humor. He just hoped that she wouldn't shut him out, he wouldn't be able to handle that.

"Well before you do, would you accept me apology?"

He was apologizing, which meant he thought it was a mistake. Brooke once again could have cried all over the floor, leaving out the fact that the kiss they shared was the most meaningful kiss she had in a while.

But, she still went with whatever flow Lucas was on.

"I think I can make an exception for gullible basketball players." She winked at him and laughed once again.

"So hey, were getting out of this place soon and I was just wondering if this afternoon you'd like to go and grab some coffee with me, you know catch up on old times."

Brooke turned to face him, "Whatever you want Lucas."

She felt like a robot, a robot that repeated that same exact phrase whenever Lucas was around. She just couldn't stop it, and that scared her. What could that mean?

He lifted her chin, "You can pick the place."

She laughed, "Oh goody now I can finally take you to Starbucks!"

"Hey, you know I don't like that coffee." He whined.

She swatted his shoulder playfully, "That's why I'm picking it."

"That's my bad shoulder!" He complained while laughing.

"I'm so sorry," She told him and touched the place on his shoulder.

Both could feel a chill run down their spine. They broke apart and looked at the floor.

Brooke looked up again, "Don't ditch me just because you know where were going!"

He grinned at her, "Wouldn't think of it."

Just then Peyton sauntered up and linked her arm through his. And Brooke wanted to run.

"Lucas, you ready to go?" Peyton asked him.

Lucas, knowing the moment was ruined and he was screwed, could only nod and wave at Brooke before retreating into a different hallway.

"Ass," Brooke muttered while shutting her locker. Oh yeah, she was definitely burning _everything_ Lucas gave her.

* * *

After school, the Tree Hill High seniors pushed their way through the double doors and ran to their cars to go to the beach, while Brooke had to wait for Lucas because they were still going out for coffee. 

She was thinking about leaving and ditching him, but she didn't want to give him that much satisfaction. She stomped her foot and looked at her watch, now ready to just screw him and everything and just jump in her light blue beetle bug and drive off when she saw his blonde head appear in her view.

"I thought you weren't going to show after today's situation." He told her sheepishly.

"Well I agreed to coffee and I want my Starbucks coffee."

He nodded and stuck his hand out, "You lead the way princess."

"Now that's what I like to be called." She told him and then followed his arm to her car, which they would both take.

* * *

Peyton decided on a leisurely stroll in the park after hearing about Lucas and Brooke's infamous coffee date. 

She decided to get some ice cream so she wouldn't look like such a loner just walking around the park with no one else beside her.

Just then somebody came up and bit half of her ice cream cone.

"Mmm," The person purred, "I love vanilla."

The brown haired brown eyed beauty of a boy looked up at her and all she could do was laugh. She was secretly glad he wasn't being distant with her.

"Jake!" She exclaimed and swatted his arm, "I was eating that!"

He grinned, "And so was I."

She rolled her eyes at him, but was glad he was along for her walk in the park. Although, she was confused as to why he was hanging out with her.

"So what are you doing roaming the park?" He asked.

"Lucas is out with Brooke for coffee so I decided to grab an ice cream cone and enjoy the beautiful day."

Jake looked at her skeptically, "Peyton, I don't think you've ever said 'enjoy the beautiful day' in all of your life."

She laughed, "Okay so really I just didn't want to look like a loner walking around with nothing in my hand."

"Well maybe I can change that," Jake said and slipped his hand through hers.

Her whole body stiffened.

"Jake," she began, not wanting to tell him this, "I'm still with Lucas."

Jake looked at the floor, now beat red with embarrassment. "Okay, then just ignore what I said and what I did."

She forced a smile and nodded, knowing she couldn't forget the romantic gesture if she tried.

"You know, I was thinking we could go back to the 'Trick' building and hang out there." Peyton suggested. She knew Trick was no longer up unless Peyton, Karen, and Deb were there to help get it started again.

"Sounds like a plan," Jake told her, "I'll race you there!"

"But I'm holding an ice cream cone! No fair!" She whined, but Jake was gaining speed, laughing in the distance.

"Screw it," She said and threw the ice cream cone on the ground, forgetting the fact that she was litering and sped off with him.

"You are soo going down!" She yelled after him.

* * *

Lucas and Peyton were hanging out after their exceptionally great day, neither of them telling each other how much fun they really had or how much they really wanted to be with the other partners they spent the day with. 

There was nothing left in their relationship besides friendship. They both missed their unbelievable connection where they could both just read each other's minds. Maybe they lost that connection once they started going out.

And so they lay in Peyton's bed, looking out the window, and thinking about their significant others.

* * *

Well, there it is! The updates should be coming a lot faster because I already have everything written out. Don't forget to review, they mean a lot! 


	11. Out of Breath

**A/N: Wow! Thank you so much for all of the reviews! Well I won't keep you waiting since the end is near, so enjoy this chapter! I think you all will like it, if you know what I mean!**

Chapter 11

It was the day before graduation, and everyone could not sit still. Teachers were anxious to get the seniors out and the seniors were anxious for getting out. No more school at Tree Hill High for them, they were done!

Nathan and Haley walked down the hallway hand in hand whispering things in each other's ears, probably about the baby and how much in love they are.

Brooke was coming down the same hallway as them and all she could do was smile. She loved Nathan and Haley so much and she only wanted them to be happy, but it seemed like they already were.

"Brooke!" Haley exclaimed and broke apart from her husband for a moment. "I haven't talked to you in forever! How are you holding up?"

Haley pulled Brooke in a hug and Brooke gratefully accepted. "I'm just holding."

"Have you talked to Lucas at all?"

"Oh yeah, I talked to him yesterday while we were out for coffee and before his girlfriend Peyton took him away from me." Brooke explained.

"He's back with Peyton?" Haley exclaimed.

Brooke nodded, "But it's okay because the kiss was a mistake anyways. I'm sure he would agree with me if we ever talk about it."

Haley sighed, "He didn't tell you it was a mistake though right?"

Brooke shook her head.

"Good," Haley began, "Because I bet he doesn't think it was."

Brooke just tried to ignore the situation completely.

"Okay, enough talking about Lucas!" Haley exclaimed and put her arm around Brooke, "Were graduating tomorrow!"

"Whoo," Brooke replied in complete monotone.

"Okay, because of your attitude, were hanging out after school. You're fricking Brooke Davis for goodness sake and you're going to have some fun on the last day of school!" Haley yelled.

Brooke looked at her, shocked. "Those hormones are really kicking in aren't they?"

* * *

At the end of the day Brooke was found back at her locker, feeling like her whole world was being ripped away from her, and she didn't mean Peyton and Lucas. 

She was graduating high school and she was going to college. She was nervous as hell and she didn't how she was going to deal with all of it. She was lucky that she found a college around here, so she would be here for Nathan and Haley's baby upon hearing the news that she was a godparent. She just hoped that everything would work out for her, but like all the other times, she had huge doubts.

"Hey Brooke," Lucas exclaimed.

Brooke jumped, "You scared me, Eugene!"

Lucas held a hand up, "What did I tell you yesterday about my middle name?"

She put her hand on her chin in wonder, "That you loved it?"

"Haha very funny, Penelope."

Brooke flinched, "Okay fine, no middle names for the either of us, since we obviously don't have the greatest ones."

"Deal," they both said and shook on it.

"So the reason I came over here was to ask you if you wanted to do something after school. It's the last day so I wanted to know if you wanted to blow of some steam and stress." He suggested.

"I already have plans with Haley," She told him nonchalantly.

Lucas couldn't hide his disappointment, "Oh okay. Well how about after?"

"I'll call you if I'm free." She told him and then closed her locker, waved good bye and walked through the doors.

* * *

Haley was waiting for Brooke at Brooke's car. She told Nathan what they were doing and Nathan was fine with it, now being able to get some things done that he needed. 

"Hey tutor girl," Brooke greeted as she got in her little baby blue bug.

"Hey Brooke, what's wrong?"

"Oh nothing, Lucas just asked me to hang out today and I told him I had plans with you. It's like why isn't he spending his time with his girlfriend?"

Haley had one idea.

"Who knows?" Haley told her, deciding not to bring up how its obvious Lucas still loves her.

"So where do you want to go?" Brooke asked.

"This is about you relaxing so you pick the place and I…well I will just have to deal with it."

"Okay fine, but I'm not going to do too much walking, considering you're very pregnant tutor mommy."

"Sounds good to me."

* * *

It was now late in the afternoon and Lucas was at Peyton's. He wished Brooke had been available today because he always pictured the two of them enjoying their last day at Tree Hill High _together_. 

But here he was, staring intently at his phone, hoping that Brooke will call and tell him that she wants to hang out with him now.

He was shaken out of his thoughts when he heard Peyton mutter something.

"What?" He asked.

"Just go after her." She repeated, more clearly this time.

"Go after who?"

"Don't play dumb Lucas; we both know you don't want this." She told him like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Brooke? You think I want to go after Brooke? Peyton no, you're wrong." He reassured himself and her. But even he couldn't deny it any longer, he was slipping.

"No Lucas, you're wrong for denying your feelings. I see the way you look at her and I know that you have your little jokes and little pacts with each other. You both connect in a way that we never could… with true love." She said it sadly, but she had known this for a long time.

"No Peyton, you're wrong. You're the one I want to be with remember? It's you that I see next to me when all of my dreams come true." He began to grow frantic.

"Lucas, I couldn't forget that speech if I tried, but the bottom line is, were just friends. That's all we'll ever be. And…I'm fine with that."

"Why because you have Jake?" He snapped.

Peyton sighed sadly and thought about the chocolate haired boy, "I don't have him."

"You're right," Lucas finally whispered, "This isn't right."

She nodded, "I know."

"I guess I just wanted this to be right so everything didn't get so complicated." He admitted.

"I did too," She replied.

"I'm sorry Peyton."

"Don't worry about me; I have my own problems to deal with, like getting Jake back." She said slightly laughing, "Go to her."

"Thank you." He said and ran out of Peyton's room, into his car, and immediately called Brooke's cell phone.

* * *

Brooke and Haley decided to do a little shopping and then plop down on a bench for some pretzel's and ice cream. 

"You and Nathan are going to be fine." Brooke told Haley.

"I know we are, I'm just excited to start our new life together." She gushed.

"I would be too if I were you."

Haley turned to her, "Hey Brooke, we never told you who the other godparent was did we?"

She shook her head, "No."

"Okay well then don't get mad, but we picked Lucas."

Brooke just sat there; it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Haley waved a hand in her face, "Brooke?"

"Just tell me that the only reason you did it was because it was in the best interest of your kid and because you and Nathan are very close to him."

"That's why we did it." Haley replied even though she picked Lucas for another reason Brooke did not list. She hoped that if she picked him, they would get back together.

"Then I'm okay with it."

"Good," Haley said, relieved. "Hey, what time is it?"

Brooke pulled out her phone; she had 18 missed calls and 10 new voicemails along with 5 text messages.

"Whoa, who is calling me?" She wondered aloud.

Haley looked down at her phone, "Someone wants to get a hold of you."

"Brooke?" Someone said quietly.

Brooke's mouth almost dropped to the floor, "Chase, what are you doing here?"

She shoved her phone in her purse, now knowing who had been making all of the calls.

"I wanted to talk to you."

"Okay," Brooke began and told Haley she would be right back, and then pulled Chase away from her.

"The way we ended things were really bad and I just want to fix them. I don't want to be away from you Brooke I want to be with you."

"Chase, you said that you still liked me but couldn't be with me. That pretty much tells me that I disgust you."

"No, no it's not like that. I just…had a bad experience with cheating, that's all. I want to be with you Brooke." He explained.

"I know you had a bad time with your last girlfriend but I wasn't like her because I didn't cheat on you. But you still put your judgments on me."

Brooke sighed, "Look, I'm not mad at you I just can't be with you."

"Is it because of that Lucas guy?"

Brooke looked down at the floor. Well, that was partly it.

"Are you in love with him?" Chase urged.

The burning question. Was she really in love with him or not? Although they went out for coffee and she only went to make him mad, she ended up having a great time. She loved their jokes they had together, she loved annoying him, she loved making him nervous, she loved being with him, she loved hi-

Him. It was true. She loved him; she was _in_ love with him.

"Yes," Brooke replied quietly, "I am."

He looked down, "Oh."

"I'm sorry Chase, but I can't be with you. Friends yes, but with no benefits."

"If that's what you want," He laughed, "Then I'd like that."

"Me too." She hugged him one last time and when she pulled away, she knew that she would still have contact with him; she was going to try as hard as she could to keep in touch.

They both walked away and Brooke went right back to Haley, with her mouth wide open.

Haley jumped from her seat, "What! Tell me! What did he do, like propose to you or something? Speak!"

"I told him that I loved Lucas. I told him that I was _in_ love with Lucas."

Haley smiled. "It's about time Brooke."

* * *

Peyton ran all the way to Jake's house, hoping he didn't disappear again. 

"Jake?" She yelled while knocking on the door. She prayed that his parents didn't open the door.

She didn't stop knocking until the door flew open and she took a couple steps back.

Sure enough, Jake opened the door and looked at her, confused.

"Peyton…what are you-?"

"I'm in love with you." She said cutting him off. She couldn't stop smiling.

"You're what?" He asked, wanting to hear it one more time to make sure it was real.

"I'm in love with you Jake Jagelski and I want to be with you and Jenny."

Jake laughed, "What about your boyfriend?"

"We decided it wasn't working because our hearts were somewhere else."

"And you just realized that you're heart lies with me?"

"No," She began, "I've known it all along. I was just too scared to admit it."

"But what about college…and-"

"Already taken care of. I've never told anyone this but I applied to that little art school in Savannah so if you decide to move back there, I'll be with you. And I applied to schools around here of course so if you want to stay here I'll be here again." She said, sounding proud of her early thinking.

Jake was speechless. He really was in her heart, all of this time.

"So, what do you think?" She asked him with a grin.

"I think how can I say no to the girl I'm in love with?"

She laughed, her smile growing by every word he was saying. "You can't."

He laughed and scooped her up into his arms, kissing her all over her face finally happy on where they stood…together. He finally reached her lips and it felt like the world stopped, and they were melting away.

Peyton finally found her happiness, and it lied in Jake all along. She parted her mouth, allowing Jake's tongue in and wrapped her arms tighter around his neck while his arms were tightly around her waist.

They broke apart breathless, both grinning like a smitten couple.

"So, now that we are together and all of the drama is over, what do you want to do my dear?" Jake asked in an old classic movie voice.

"Live happily ever after." She told him and jumped at him again, while they stumbled back into his house, both grateful that his parents weren't home.

* * *

Brooke arrived at Rachel's around 8:00 at night and changed into her pajamas as soon as she got in. She was so tried from today and from all that had happened. I mean she goes shopping with Haley, finds out that Lucas is a godparent with her, and then Chase comes and tells her he wants to be with her. And to top it all off, she admitted that she was in love with Lucas. 

She couldn't believe it herself.

The doorbell rang furiously and she ran down the stairs to see who was at the door at this time. She was slightly scared so she grabbed the closest thing to her, which was an umbrella and held it with defense.

She slowly opened the door and once it was fully opened, she still had her eyes closed.

"Brooke!" She heard a voice yell.

She screamed and tried to jam the umbrella into the guy's stomach. The guy deflected it with ease.

"Brooke, it's me! Lucas!" He yelled.

Brooke dropped the umbrella and put her hands on her hips.

"What are you doing here?" She demanded.

He loved how she wasn't embarrassed in the least bit.

"Did you get my calls?" He asked her.

"What calls?"

"The calls I left on your cell phone. I was calling you all afternoon." He said.

"Those calls were from you?" She asked, now completely confused.

He nodded, "Yeah, who else would they be from?"

"No one. And no I didn't listen to them yet." She said keeping her hands firmly on her hips.

"Well please do whenever you have the chance," He told her sarcastically.

"Is this the reason you came here?" She asked harshly.

He shook his head.

"I have to talk to you." He told her, out of breath.

"Okay, about what?"

"I'm in love you with you Brooke Davis."

Brooke had to hold onto the wall to keep her from falling.

* * *

Okay well here it is! There's only one more chapter left and then the story is finished! I might just update it tonight depending on how many reviews I get. I hope you liked it and please review! 


	12. Heels Over Head

**A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews! I realized that alerts were down and sorry I didn't get this out sooner but this is the last chapter! I have a new story coming out soon so look for that! Thanks for sticking with this story and I hope you like the ending!**

Chapter 12

"I'm sorry you what?" She asked, not understanding what he said.

"I said I'm in love with you Brooke Davis." He repeated.

"But, but you're with Peyton." She stuttered.

"Not anymore. She knew that my heart wasn't in it. It was some where else…it was with you."

"But-" She began.

"No 'buts' Brooke," He began, "I'm in love with you and I always have been. I'm sorry that I went to Peyton after you told me to at the game but I'm glad I did because now I'm so sure about how I feel. I know I'm in love with you Brooke, and I think I've known it for a long time now." He explained, now smiling wide.

But Brooke wasn't. Sure this is what she wanted to hear but she didn't want to hear it right after he and Peyton broke up. She wanted him to have time to think about this, time to get it right.

"Lucas, I'm flattered but I only think you're doing this because you just broke up with Peyton. Come talk to me when you are sure of everything." She told him sadly, and shut the door in his face.

* * *

A dejected Lucas had no where else to go except for Nathan and Haley's. He couldn't go home, because he didn't want to deal with his mom and he couldn't go to Peyton's because he knew she would be busy with Jake. And he for sure couldn't go back to Brooke's. 

He knocked on their door and waited. Haley opened the door on the third knock.

"Lucas, what are you doing here?"

"I have a bit of a problem Hales." He told her, looking at his feet.

She led the way to the couch in the big mansions family room. "What is it?"

"I'm in love with Brooke."

Haley smiled, "That should be a good thing!"

"It was, until I went to her house." He replied sadly, looking at the floor.

"Why? What did she say?"

"She said that the only reason I feel this way is because I just broke up with Peyton but the truth is Hales, that's the reason Peyton and I broke up in the first place. I even told her that but she still wouldn't listen."

"I'm sure she is just afraid of opening up her heart to you again. But don't get too sad, she turned down Chase yesterday because she told him she was in love with you."

Haley's hand immediately flew over her mouth. "That was too much information."

Lucas face turned hopeful, "She really said that about me?"

She sighed, "Yeah, she did."

Lucas stood up, "I have to go Hales, I have the perfect idea."

He was already on his way out the door when Haley yelled, "Don't tell her I told you!"

* * *

Brooke sat on her bed with her phone in her hands. So all of those voicemails and missed calls and texts were from him. They weren't from Chase. How could she be so stupid? 

But now she was afraid to listen to all of the messages and texts. She didn't want to know. She didn't want to find out that she was wrong to send him away. She mustered up all the courage she could, which wasn't much, and pressed the button to call her voicemail.

Once she punched in her password, she awaited impatiently scared to hear what was going to come out.

_"Hey Brooke, it's me Lucas, I uh, was just wondering what you were doing because I really __really__ need to talk to you. Peyton and I broke up because I'm not in love with her. I'm in love with someone else…"_

She smiled as she heard his voice and decided to listen to another one.

_"It's me again, on my last message I said that I was in love with someone else and that someone…oh man… __Brooke that someone is you.__ I'm in love with you Brooke Penelope Davis and I know we weren't going to mention our middle names anymore but I just wanted to show you that I love every part of you."_

That message was cut off, so she waited until the next one appeared.

_"And that I want to be with you. So I'm coming over right now, I'm on my way to tell you all of this and that Peyton was never in my heart, she never had a chance Brooke. You stole it the minute you were waiting for me in the backseat of my car. So I hope you're ready to accept me and to be with me, because that's all I want. I want you."_

That last message made Brooke break into sobs. Why did she have to listen to the last one? She assumed the texts were the same way. She hugged her knees and cried into her pajamas, now regretting her decision to make him leave. And worst of all, they were graduating tomorrow and then they would be on their way to college.

Why didn't she listen to the messages before pushing him away?

* * *

It was graduation in the town of Tree Hill and everyone gathered around for the big ceremony. 

Everyone was seated in alphabetical order, with Jake sitting in the back by the parents, being there for his girlfriend. And Peyton couldn't stop looking back at him, smiling the whole time. She was so happy at this moment she could explode. She loved him so much.

Nathan and Haley were seated also, not by each other though because Haley was the valedictorian of her class, so she sat up front on the stage.

Mouth and Shelly were together too, even though they also weren't seated together. But it didn't matter, because both of them weren't going to let go of this new relationship they started again.

And Brooke was running late, as usual. She realized that spending half the night crying didn't make you look good the next day so she had to spend even more time on her makeup this morning. She was rushing in and the ceremony was beginning in ten minutes, which meant she was supposed to be there 20 minutes ago.

She ran through the lunch area, holding her cap when Lucas stepped in front of her.

"Brooke wait, I have to talk to you."

"Okay Lucas but right now I really have no time because I need to be sitting down already!" She yelled, running even faster.

Lucas began running along side her. "Can't you just stop for two minutes?"

"Not right now, sorry!" She yelled and they both reached the seats. Lucas watched as Brooke ran up to the front, to claim her spot.

* * *

The ceremony was beginning and Whitey started it off with a speech on how he knows all of them very well, especially the boys that he coached throughout the years. You could see little tears falling on his face when he ended the speech, and everyone applauded. 

Next up was Haley, the valedictorian, and everyone once again applauded. She presented her speech with such grace that everyone there was listening to every word she said. During her speech she stopped to glance at the people most important in her life. First she looked at Nathan, truly loving everything about him and so grateful that she had him. Next was Lucas, her best friend since she could remember and was so happy that he was going to be her son's godparent. And then it was Brooke, her Brookie, the one girl that she could tell anything too and the one girl that would always be on her side, looking out for her. She didn't know how she ended up being friends with the most popular girl in school but she was glad she was.

Brooke gave her encouraging smile back and Haley continued with her speech. This time, Haley looked at the people that were there for her, like Peyton, Jake, and Mouth. She couldn't have been happier then when she was with all of these people.

She ended her speech and everyone applauded and cheered, and slowly everyone started standing up.

Brooke yelled 'You go tutor mommy!' and Haley laughed. Leave it to Brooke to yell something at a very important part.

Nathan whistled and mouthed, 'I love you' while Lucas did the same except he yelled 'Go Hales!'

She mouthed that she loved her husband back, and she mouthed that she loved Lucas too.

Then, Principal Turner called all of the graduates up and they all got their diplomas, their smiles wide and eyes shining. This was the day that everyone dreamed about. It was the day that everything and everybody changed.

Once the ceremony was over and people were starting to get up to start taking pictures, Lucas jumped out of his seat and ran after Brooke.

He saw her, taking a picture with Bevin and Skillz. When they were finished, Brooke saw him and ran over to him.

"Lucas! We graduated!" She yelled and hugged him. He laughed and hugged her tighter.

"So what was it that you were going to talk to me about?" She yelled over all the noise.

"Brooke, about yesterday…" He began and waited for her to cut in. But she didn't, she just stayed put with a smile on her face.

"Yesterday I said something that I truly meant. You told me to come and get you when I was sure of everything and here I am. Brooke, I've been sure about us ever since you said you loved me. I'm in love with you Brooke Penelope Davis and we are meant to be together. You said so yourself that people who are meant to be together always find each other in the end. Well here I am Brooke, and here you are. Were here, were standing here because that's where were meant to be."

By now everyone had stopped talking and taking pictures to hear the blonde boy profess his love for the brunette beauty that was standing before him.

"And how do you know that?" She whispered. Everyone leaned in more to catch every word they were saying.

"Because were so different but were just as the same. Because we both have terrible middle names, sorry Mom, and because even though you claimed before that we don't really know each other, we do. Because I can read what you're thinking at all times and I know what you're going through. I'm sorry that I never let you in but it was because of my own insecurities. I didn't want you to run away when I let you in on all that was going on. It wasn't because I couldn't talk to you because most of the time Brooke, you're the only one I wanted to talk to. I love you Brooke Penelope-"

She cut him off, "Okay that's enough of the middle names."

He laughed and everyone awaited her response. "I love you too Lucas Eugene Scott. I'm in love with you."

Everyone cheered around them and Lucas and Brooke inched closer to each other.

"I thought we were done with the middle names." Lucas whispered to Brooke, their foreheads touching.

Instead of responding, she laughed and Lucas leaned in and kissed her. Her arms wrapped around his neck instantly and his flew to her waist. They wanted to be closer to each other, so much closer. She parted her mouth open so they could, and then both broke away smiling.

Once again everyone cheered and began throwing their hats in the air. Lucas and Brooke shrugged at each other and then they too threw their hats in the air.

Lucas and Brooke then went back to kissing and holding hands, because that was the only thing they wanted to do in this very moment.

* * *

Two days later, after all of their friends saw the big public display of affection that Lucas and Brooke shared on graduation, Haley organized for them all to come to her and Nathan's house to all have once last hang out. 

They all arrived together, Jake and Peyton, Lucas and Brooke, and even Mouth and Shelly decided to tag along.

They were all sitting around the family room, on the floor and the couches when the doorbell rang.

"Who could that be?" Brooke asked.

"Who knows?" Haley said and walked to the door.

She smiled at who it was. "I'm so glad you could come!"

She pulled the red headed beauty in the house until she found out that she didn't come alone.

"Rachel!" Everyone yelled in excitement.

"Oh, Rachel…"Brooke began.

Rachel stopped her, "I told her everything Brooke, don't worry."

Brooke looked over at Haley who smiled, "I'm not mad, but we'll talk about it later."

Brooke hugged Rachel. "Thank you and I'm sorry that you got kicked out partly because of me."

"Well, actually…"

"There's someone else too…" Haley muttered and Uncle Cooper popped through the doorway.

"Hot Uncle Cooper?" Brooke yelled and everyone else just stared at her.

"What?" She asked loudly and then turned to Lucas. "I already have the guy I want."

They all laughed again and Rachel whispered in Brooke's ear, "If I hadn't of gotten kicked out I would have never met up with him again."

Brooke smiled and Rachel and Cooper sat down, with Rachel on his lap.

"So tell me, how did you guys get back together exactly?" Brooke asked.

"Well," Rachel began, "I was roaming some street in California when I saw him. I was terrified because of the way things ended between us so I didn't approach him."

"But I saw her and couldn't keep my eyes off of her so I decided to go up to her and talk, despite how we last left each other." Cooper explained.

"And then we started going out for coffee more and more and coffee's turned into dinner's and dates so now here we are. As soon as we got Haley's call we rushed out here to see all of you guys." Rachel told all of them and Cooper kissed her on the lips.

"Well, mom's sure going to be happy about that." Nathan told them and Cooper laughed.

"I can deal with your mother, don't worry. I'm not letting her go this time." He held onto Rachel tighter and she giggled.

"Like I'd let you." She whispered and they began to kiss again.

"Okay, you can stay only if you don't express PDA every five seconds." Nathan said jokingly.

Rachel looked around at everyone. Nathan was sitting down with his arm around Haley because she was pregnant and he was now delicate with her always, Peyton was comfortably sitting in Jake's lap, and Brooke was almost straddling Lucas over there. And of course, Mouth and Shelly were sitting next to each other, gazing into each other's eyes.

"Looks like everyone is expressing PDA right now," Rachel joked.

They all started into a fit of laughter once again until Haley brought out a box.

"What is it?" Peyton asked.

"Well you guys, the reason I told you all to come here was because I wanted to have one last 'hoorah' before we all go to college, but it was also because Brooke and I went baby clothes shopping and I wanted to show all of you." Haley explained, smiling.

"Ooh Hales we bought the cutest ones!" Brooke yelled. "And we fought for them pretty darn well too!"

"You were amazing Brooke, the way you grabbed the clothes of the crabby ladies hands. You definitely showed her whose boss." Haley said sarcastically.

"Hey, be grateful. If I didn't wrestle them out of her you wouldn't have these adorable baby clothes right now." Brooke said with a pout.

Haley laughed and opened the box, beginning to show everyone the clothes.

The guys were of course, uninterested but the girls were 'Oohing' and 'Aahing' the whole time.

The guys huddled into a nice sports conversation that consisted of basketball and NASCAR racing.

"So Uncle Cooper, can we go for another ride sometime?" Nathan asked.

"Well Lucas, Jake, and Mouth can but not you. I'm too afraid that you'll crash a car again." Cooper said and laughed.

"Hey, I had my reasons. But there are no reasons now to crash a car so I want to go racing again."

"Dude, you just want a rematch against me since I beat you all." Lucas joked.

"Uh, Luke, were you the one that crashed and hurt your head because I specifically remember me beating you." Nathan told him.

"No, I don't think so…" Lucas began but was soon stopped by the girls screaming at the baby clothes.

The boys just shook their heads and laughed.

"Women," They all muttered together.

* * *

Haley kept pulling out more adorable clothes each time and the girls would just scream even louder. Peyton of course would never scream at baby clothes but ever since meeting Jake and Jenny, she had been hooked on the cute clothes. 

She couldn't wait to start her new life with Jake and Jenny.

"And here's the one with the little blue sailboats on them!" Haley exclaimed and held them up for all of them to see.

"Aw! Hales show them the little basketball jersey!" Brooke exclaimed

"It's my favorite one," Haley exclaimed and held it up, everyone gasped.

"It even has his number," Rachel said looking at it with eager eyes.

"I know, a great find right?" Haley said.

All of a sudden Haley clutched her stomach.

"Hales, what's wrong?" Brooke asked worriedly as she ran over to her.

"Oh it's nothing really," She said very calmly, "I just think my water just broke."

"Oh my god!" All of the girls screamed.

Then they yelled to the guys to get over here.

They all came sauntering in, with cool looks on their faces. Not for long.

"Nathan, Haley is having the baby!" Brooke yelled at him.

Nathan was in shock. "Uh, what do I do?"

Rachel laughed, "Nathan calm down and just get the car ready, we'll help her pack and Lucas, Cooper, Jake, and Mouth can help her in the car.

Nathan kissed Haley on the head and ran into the car. All four of the guys were in panic and all the girls could do was laugh, and look at them lovingly.

Haley was going to have her baby tonight.

Hand in hand, friendship and fate, they are all strong and happy, knowing that they are all going to keep in touch forever, and of course they will, for they are all friends with no benefits.

* * *

Okay well it's finished! I hope you enjoyed the ride with this story. My new one is coming out soon and I just want to thank all of the loyal reviewers because without you guys, I wouldn't have finished this! So drop a review! 


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